


Transduction

by 263Adder



Series: Science for Geniuses, Love for Dummies [6]
Category: The Umbrella Academy (Comics), The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Abusive Father, Adopted Siblings, Blood and Gore, Canon & Non-Canon Relationships, Childhood, F/M, Inspired by Shaun of the Dead, Rated For Violence, Zombie Apocalypse, Zombies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2020-12-15
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:13:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 26,954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27305398
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/263Adder/pseuds/263Adder
Summary: Vanya is an ordinary girl whose life has no direction. However, her uneventful life takes a sudden turn when she finds herself in the middle of a zombie apocalypse with no Umbrella Academy around to save her.Or, a loosely inspired Shaun of the Dead AU.
Relationships: Allison Hargreeves/Luther Hargreeves, Ben Hargreeves/Diego Hargreeves/Klaus Hargreeves, Number Five | The Boy/Vanya Hargreeves, Vanya Hargreeves & Original Character(s)
Series: Science for Geniuses, Love for Dummies [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1471910
Comments: 72
Kudos: 138
Collections: The Occult Academy





	1. Attachment

For the Umbrella Academy, and the man who dictated their lives, the outside world was always something of a mystery. They rarely engaged with members of the public and were long told to think of non-powered people as “others” who could never relate to them in importance or understanding. While Sir Reginald had more experience with people, having once formed relationships with these people he now spoke so lowly of, he had never been able to fully emote with them – furthering his belief that most people were simply unworthy of his efforts. However, he created the Umbrella Academy to keep the public, the same public he demerited, safe. As Reginald often told them, it was their destiny to save the world and the peoples within it. Yet, despite all their years of preparation for such an apocalyptic event, at their first test, they failed. Their obliviousness to normality made it impossible for them to spot the early signs which showed something distinctly extraordinary was happening beyond the perceived safety of their walls.

It had started the day before. Strange cases which were only just starting to appear on that morning’s news bulletins. Hospitals were baffled by the sharp rise in emergency room cases. People phoning ambulances or turning up with bites, complaining of drunks attacking them on the subway, largely in Brooklyn but, as the night receded into day, the reports started to come from all over the city. 

The news didn’t reach the Mayor’s offices until the middle of the night, as the Police Commissioner began to worry that they would need to mobilise the National Guard; his precincts had been hit with an unusually high number of staff calling in sick, which meant they couldn’t put extra officers on the subway lines to try to capture the culprits. The Mayor’s office was also short-staffed, although they had initially put this down to a large fundraising event the night before and all their staffers overindulging on free champagne. Until they saw pathology reports faxed over from the city morgue, expressing concern about a fast-spreading disease which was being transmitted through bites. 

The Mayor’s press secretary had been a noticeable absence that morning – to the ire of the Mayor who loudly reminded his staff of the conference he was due to lead, where errant journalists would inevitably ask him about the growing crime rate and the spike in hospital admissions. Everyone in the department was relieved when finally she turned up with an hour to spare before the conference started, looking oddly pale but insisting it was just a headache. She attacked the Mayor in their car, on the way to city hall. In the process, she killed the driver and two pedestrians when the car veered into the sidewalk. 

The Mayor had always been a tremendous advocate of the Umbrella Academy; a voice of optimism even as the Police Commissioner warned of the perils of vigilantism. As such, with him dead, there was a delay in reports being sent to Sir Reginald. 

He had decided that the Academy needed to be put through their paces. They had responded to a hostage situation the week before and Reginald considered their response abysmal. As such, they would simulate the crime for the Academy to defuse under controlled conditions. It would take the majority of the day, with time set aside for him to critique their performance (as he was certain he would need to do, they so rarely met his expectations). With an instruction to Pogo to monitor the phone lines in case a mission call came through, Reginald sealed the Academy into the east wing of the mansion.

Pogo always followed Sir Reginald’s instructions to the letter and took up the post in his office with some research papers he had to read. Beyond his role as Reginald’s assistant, Pogo often engaged with medical research and had been asked by a prestigious journal to review their articles before publication. Of course, this prestigious journal had no idea they were working with a walking talking science experiment. Reginald would never allow the world to know of Pogo’s existence, so instead, he worked under a pseudonym. The same one he had accomplished his MD under. 

He expected a quiet morning but was still the picture of professionalism when the phone call finally came through. 

“H–hello? Is this the Umbrella Academy?” A man stuttered over the line, his voice pithy with nervousness. 

“All media enquiries are to be directed to Raisin PR & Creative.” Pogo said, referencing the public relations firm Sir Reginald had hired to manage the Umbrella Academy image. “This is a private line reserved for emergencies.”

He was about to hang up when the man objected. 

“Wait, I’m from the Mayor’s office. I’m the Deputy Mayor, George Romero.”

While Pogo recognised the name, they had never liaised with the deputy and he continued to believe the man was a troublesome reporter trying to get a scoop, or perhaps another hoaxer. 

“We need help.” Romero continued. “There, there’s some kind of outbreak. People are getting bitten and, and… look, I know this sounds insane! But people are dying out here and we need help!”

“If you are from the Mayor’s office,” Pogo said, his tone strongly disbelieving, “please ask the Mayor to refer any emergencies to us directly.”

“The Mayor’s dead!” Romero yelled, becoming hysterical. “Jim is dead, do you hear me? He died the same way other people out there are. For god’s sake, haven’t you looked outside? People are dying and, oh and then they aren’t.” He groaned. 

While Pogo, Reginald’s assistant, was convinced the man was perpetrating a hoax, Dr Pogo was interested. “Elaborate.”

“The people who die, they’re – what was it the medical report said,” he fumbled with some papers, “rearranging? No, reanimating. Christ, look, I don’t know what any of this nonsense means, but I know what I’ve seen. People are coming back from the dead. They’re zombies. Do you hear me? Zombies! Fucking zombies. I mean, we can’t deal with this. We need the Umbrella Academy. They can, they, fuck, I don’t know what they can do, but we can’t cope with this on our own. All right? You hear me. Now, with Jim dead, I’m the Mayor. And I am telling you to get them out here goddammit. Now!” 

Pogo promptly slammed the phone down. He didn’t need an MD to tell him that the man was clearly experiencing a flight of fancy. And with an MD he was confident in declaring that corpses do not “reanimate” unless resuscitated and that zombies belong solely in the realm of fiction. 

Turning back to his research papers, Pogo dismissed the idea of telling Sir Reginald about the phone call almost as soon as the thought crossed his mind. The Umbrella Academy had important training to complete and the delusions of one man weren’t worth disrupting that and skewing Reginald’s assessments. If there were an emergency, the proper officials would call. 

* * *

Vanya had been attending a local high school for the past six months and, in all that time, she still spent the morning and evening bus rides sitting alone. While she wouldn’t consider herself a complete social outcast – especially in contrast to the treatment she received at home – her acquaintances had never really progressed into friendships. People knew her name, they would say good morning and not complain if they were paired up in lessons. But no one could say they knew much about her, no one invited her to lunch, and no one sat next to her on the school bus. As a result, she usually spent the trip staring out of the window. Wondering whether today was the day she would finally work up the nerve to start a proper conversation with someone, to be open about herself, or to walk up to a table at lunch where people were already eating and ask if she could join them. 

Deep down, she knew she couldn’t. After a lifetime of rejection, it had become too painful to be open that way. Daydreaming about it was a way to pass the time however, a nice fantasy about a confident version of herself who could do everything she had ever wanted to do. Plus it was a much more pleasant subject for thought than wondering how the Umbrella Academy was spending their day without her. 

There had once been a time that she thought about them the same way as her classmates. Hoping for the day they would want to talk to her. To confide in her, to invite her to join them, to ask about her and her life. Except for Five, the only person she could count as a true friend, it had never come. Being sent off to school was the final nail in the coffin; the last reminder that she would never become one of them. 

Nevertheless, despite the Umbrella Academy not caring about her, she was always concerned about them. Worrying about missions or if they would get hurt during their training sessions. Five said it was silly to spend her entire life worrying about it but she couldn’t help it. Especially now she was out of the house and couldn’t get updates from Pogo while they were away. The entire time she was at school, she was in the dark. 

Except for today. Today she would be the only Hargreeves to realise what was happening. 

A creature of habit, Vanya often sat in the same seat, on the same side of the bus which meant the view outside the window had become incredibly predictable. Building, building, park, building. Everything went by in a flash until a traffic light stopped them, then she could absorb a minute’s detail before they were off again. 

She quite liked to people watch. It was one of the few hobbies she was permitted in the Academy, alongside her violin. At the next traffic light, they stopped beside a small park, a place that often attracted a diverse group of people. Families before they dropped their kids off at school, business people stopping for a coffee on their way to work, people going for a jog, walking their dogs or just coming by to feed the birds. Vanya enjoyed looking at them, imagining the lives that went on outside of their visit to the park. They were all ordinary like her and yet they still seemed better somehow. At least, the lives she imagined for them were better. She liked to think they all had loving families and friends willing to look out for them. Rich and fulfilling lives that – perhaps – one day she would also have. 

It was a lot quieter in the park that morning. If she didn’t know for a fact that schools were open she would have thought it was a holiday. There were only a few stragglers in the park, not very interesting at a first glance, but they quickly caught her full attention. They were walking so strangely like they were staggering. If Five were there he would have dismissed it as drunkenness but Vanya knew this area and had never seen anything like it. While there was nothing overt, she felt a chill prickle at the back of her neck. Something felt wrong there. Where was everyone? What was wrong with the people there? And why was no one else focusing on it? Shouldn’t someone help them? She considered asking the bus driver to stop – a small part of her always fantasising that one day she would do something that would make her a hero like the Umbrella Academy. Stopping to give medical aid to the sick or injured would count. 

Almost working up the nerve to push the stop button based on that delusion alone, Vanya was beaten to the punch by a pedestrian on the sidewalk. He stopped to check on a woman loitering by the gate. She seemed to be helplessly confused. Looking closer, Vanya realised her coat had become snagged on the metal fence enclosing the park and she couldn’t get herself free for some reason. Vanya expected the man to help her and that would be the end of it but instead – just as the bus set off again – the woman attacked him. 

Craning her head back, watching the scene in shock as the school bus pulled back into the morning traffic, Vanya saw what looked like a spray of blood emanating from the man’s shoulder. The woman’s head was still bent over the wound, suckling on it. She had bitten him!

As soon as the sight disappeared from view, she glanced around the bus disbelievingly. Surely someone was going to do something, that man was seriously hurt! And yet, no one reacted. It seemed like no one had even noticed. Was it just her? Was she the only one who had seen it?

Looking around the bus one more time, desperately looking for someone who seemed as perturbed as she felt, Vanya found no one. Facing forward again, she clasped her trembling hands and tried to think. If that man had been hurt, other people on the street could help him. And if he hadn’t been attacked – as she would have sworn he had been – then there was no point in making her classmates all think she was a liar or, worse, crazy by making a fuss over it. 

Sinking in her chair, Vanya stared at the back of the seat in front of her for the rest of the trip – refusing to look outside again. By the time she reached school, she had convinced herself it was all in her imagination. Or perhaps she had accidentally taken too much of her anxiety medication that morning; the pills Mom gave her could sometimes make her confused, especially if she overdid it. 

Despite sticking to her usual dosage, she decided that was all it was, and Vanya filed into school to start her day. As always, she was to report to her registration class for the first period of the day before starting her timetabled classes. In her registration group there were usually thirty or so students but today there was barely half a dozen in the room. Her tutor wasn’t there either, even though he was usually pottering around the classroom at least an hour before the group arrived, coming in early to finish grading papers. They all sat in their usual seats, waiting for him to turn up but he never did. 

About ten minutes after the class was meant to start, a harried-looking man from the reception desk came in and asked them to go into another classroom down the hall, where other students from their grade were gathered. Apparently, something was going around, as a lot of staff and pupils had phoned in sick or not turned up. As a result, the school had decided to combine classes for the day. 

Quietly, the people from her group followed the man and ended up in a room with just over twenty-five students. Everyone was troubled, whispering between themselves despite there being no rule against talking. Things were so bizarre that even Vanya was invited into the conversation. 

“Okay,” Toshio, from her English literature class, said, “did anyone else see anything strange this morning?”

One by one, people shared what they had seen and Vanya finally felt reassured as she recounted what had happened at the park. 

“I thought it was just me.” She confessed. “No one else said anything.”

“People have been acting weird.” Brad, a popular boy in her year, assured. “It’s making people scared. They might have been too afraid to mention it.”

“It’s crazy how many people aren’t here,” Niamh said. “Do you think it’s serious?”

“Maybe it’s a bad flu season?” Vanya suggested. 

“I’ve never seen a flu season like this.” Toshio groaned, clearly troubled. “Besides, why would it make people act so strange. Attacking people and walking around like they’re drunk.”

“Maybe there’s a new drug going around?” Max suggested. 

Brad shook his head. “I’m telling you all, something bad is happening. I don’t like this.”

Given how quiet they all fell, everyone felt the same way. 

That sensation which had first started when she saw the deserted park intensified and Vanya rubbed her prickling neck uncomfortably. She wished Five was there with her, he would know what to do. Maybe she should call home and ask to be collected from school? Except, if there was something bad happening, the Umbrella Academy would most likely be on the front lines keeping people safe. 

But who would keep them safe?

The teacher watching over their group called their attention so he could mark them present. Then he gave them their revised timetable. There weren’t enough teachers for them to follow their usual schedule so they would have to go to whatever class the teachers had turned up for. Their first class would therefore be gym, which drew groans of complaint. Half of them didn’t have their gym kit as they weren’t scheduled for the lesson on a Monday. 

“I know, I know. But we’re doing the best we can.” The teacher said. “Now hurry along, I need to get to my class.”

Grabbing her bag, Vanya followed everyone out. As they walked through the grounds, they could see a lot of terse conversations taking place as people shared their own stories. Relatives who weren’t answering their telephones. Odd sightings on their way into work. Having to take the bus as subway stations across the city had been unexpectedly closed. As they walked they could hear all sorts of theories. A terrorist attack. A pandemic. One person even thought the government was testing a new gas on them, aiming to cause hysteria within the population. 

“What do you think it is?” Toshio asked her as they neared the gym, also listening to the whispers. 

She tried to give him a reassuring smile. “I’m sure we’ll find out what’s happening soon. I bet the police are investigating the attacks and if there is a disease the hospitals will figure it out.”

“Yeah.” He sighed. Glancing around the quad again, he added, “It doesn’t feel right though, does it? Being here? I don’t know about you, but I feel as though I should be doing something. Heading home, getting to my family. I don’t know why they even bothered with classes today. There are hardly any students and it’s not like we’re going to be able to focus on our classes.”

“I know what you mean.” Vanya sighed. “Hopefully, Coach will go easy on us today.” 

* * *

Pogo was on his second paper when another call came through. This one he recognised, as the Police Commissioner brusquely requested Sir Reginald’s presence on the line. When Pogo deferred, explaining the Academy was engaged, for the time being, he stated his business:

“As you might be aware,” he drawled, “the city has been placed on high alert. We have just closed all the bridges leading into Manhattan but cases are still developing on the island. The Governor has mobilised the National Guard to support our forces, however – as the epidemic is fast spreading – we’re still outnumbered by the growing numbers of zombies. I have spoken with the Governor and he authorised the disclosure of classified resources to the Umbrella Academy in exchange for your assistance. Now, if you could…”

“Zombies?” Pogo echoed, not believing his ears. 

“It’s not what we’re officially labelling them, we don’t have a formal diagnosis from the doctors yet, so that’s what we’re using in the meantime. The medical examiners are reluctant to say zombie until the cause is properly identified - you won’t see it in their reports - but the epidemic does share many similarities with zombies as seen in fictional works. Reanimation, cannibalisation and the transmission of some sort of virus which turns other people into zombies. Now, as I was saying…”

“Mr Kirkman, you are the second person today to speak to me about zombies. Yet, as a medical doctor, I can assure you they do not exist. A virus of the kind you are talking of, causing reanimation and cannibalistic tendencies, does not exist.”

“Well, it does now.” The Police Commissioner declared, taking no argument. “I am faxing over several medical records. Some are incomplete as the medical examiners were attacked once the bodies reanimated. We have captured a few specimens but experiments are still in progress. For now, my department’s chief concern is halting the spread of infection. The Governor has ordered a curfew which will stay in place for at least two days, though likely longer until we can track all infected hosts. The infected hosts are then to be destroyed, as we do not have the facilities for containment of such vast numbers. Given they are technically dead and currently hostile, we have been given approval for deadly force.”

Keeping one ear to the receiver, Pogo picked up the documents which came through Sir Reginald’s fax machine. They were stamped with official seals and were on the correct letterheads for the city mortuary. 

“Tell the Umbrella Academy to report to my office building. Take a private car and ensure it stops for no one. Once they arrive we will distribute additional materials. Is that understood?”

“Yes.” Pogo stammered, reading over the documents while he listened for further instruction.

“Excellent. Anyone else staying on your property should congregate in a secure room. Lock the doors and blockade the windows if you can. Check anyone who has arrived at the property within the last twenty-four hours for possible bite marks. We have also noted the following symptoms: headaches and nausea, with similarities to the common flu.” He sounded as though he were reading from a script. “If you know anyone who has been bitten, it is absolutely vital that you isolate them immediately. Did you get all of that? All right, we’ll see you soon. Good luck.” Kirkman said before hanging up. 

Pogo's first thought was Vanya – she would need to be retrieved from school – but he knew his priority was informing Sir Reginald so the Umbrella Academy could be mobilised. The city needed them. Once they were on their way, he could make private arrangements for Vanya. 

On his way to the east wing, Pogo passed the kitchen. He stopped there to tell Grace to report to her station in the infirmary in case injuries came in. As she filed past him, programmed not to ask questions in emergency situations, his eyes landed on the door leading into the alleyway. While the front door led directly onto the avenue, this was a quiet entrance which provided a good view of the main street. He could glance outside to see what was happening. The Police Commissioner said the island of Manhattan was cordoned off and, while cases were rising, it should still be safe enough to peek out the door. 

The medical records were fairly definitive that there was some kind of virus – although he doubted there were really zombies, it was medically unfeasible – and he recognised the voice of the Police Commissioner, but for Pogo he still cautioned about approaching Sir Reginald about this without further evidence. If it turned out it was a hoax, as he had initially suspected with the first phone call, allowing the Academy to attend such a mission could turn into a large public embarrassment. Sir Reginald would be so disappointed in him.

Just one look; it wouldn’t hurt and then he could be certain. 

Opening the door, Pogo kept his hand on the handle as he peered around the doorframe. He could hear the commotion before he saw it. People driving wildly, others running down the street as though there were wild dogs at their heels. Screaming, shouts for help, calls of warning. It was more than enough to convince him. Hoax or no, there were people in distress and the Umbrella Academy was needed to keep them safe. 

Making his retreat, he very nearly made it inside until a hand stopped him in his tracks. Slowly turning his head, he found himself face–to–face with something he had – up until a second ago – thought was impossible. 

Its breath was rank with the flesh caught between its teeth, skin a blotchy red that had existed before its death, caused by too many indulgent nights with a bottle of cheap vodka. There was no absent glaze over its eyes as one would expect from a corpse; instead, it fixed upon him with intense focus, no longer capable of seeing past its next meal. Mouth stretching wide, Pogo watched in transfixed horror as it latched onto him – its eyes never wavering from his as it dug its teeth into his shoulder, causing excruciating pain. When it broke away with a squelch, a chunk of his flesh ripped away with him. Pogo tried futilely to stem the bleeding and escape but he was already light-headed from the blood loss. With a pitiful yelp, he was brought down to his knees, his palms pawing at the doorway step but the threshold was too far from his reach. As the zombie began to devour him, his blurring vision remained staring longingly at the Academy’s open door.

* * *

In her inventory of the medical cabinets, Grace noticed a lack of rubbing alcohol, of which there was a surplus in the kitchen for cleaning purposes. Swiftly making her way there she noticed the open back door and promptly closed it, failing to notice the bloody handprints on the stoop. 

Picking up the required item, she returned to her post, her medical programming overwriting her other subroutines. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have written the whole story already, it will be five chapters total. The other chapters need a good edit as my computer is broken and I had to write it all on my iPad which isn't ideal! Which means I may be slow to respond to comments, but I promise I will get back to everyone as soon as I can. 
> 
> I hope to upload the rest of the story soon. I hope you all liked this! Happy Halloween!!


	2. Integration

“Everyone get changed. Those of you without a kit can take stuff from the lost and found.” Coach barked, rubbing the temples of his head as he spoke. 

Those without groaned. The clothes in the lost and found were usually smelly, hideously coloured and either too big or uncomfortably tiny. 

Grateful she had her own gym clothes with her, Vanya hastened into the changing rooms. There were only five other girls in there with her and they all dressed in silence. 

Outside, Coach pulled out the gym equipment they would need and waited until everyone was assembled before telling them what they would do. He was still rubbing his head, struggling with a migraine he’d had since he first woke up. In no mood to engage, he told them they’d divide into teams and play dodgeball. Once the game was set up, he retreated into a small office just off the main sports hall and soundly shut the door behind him. 

“He’s leaving?” Niamh said disbelievingly. 

“I guess he needs to be near a phone in case there’s any news.” Toshio reasoned. 

“Do you think they’ll evacuate the school?”

“If they were going to,” Brad said, “it would be stupid to make us change clothes. They can’t think anything is going to happen or they would have kept us in the main building. So, let’s just play. It’ll take our minds off it.”

“Yeah, all right.” Toshio agreed. “Someone will need to referee.”

“I’ll do it,” Vanya said. Having spent her entire life on the side-lines, it was now where she felt the most comfortable. 

No one argued, everyone trusting her to be impartial. As they took up the line, Toshio offered to take it in turns so she could still play but – knowing how bad she was at aiming her throws – Vanya assured him she was fine as the referee. Better than joining a team and letting everyone down. 

Starting out quiet, the game grew more spirited as people were caught out and sent off court – there they stood at the sides, encouraging their teammates while trying to subtly roll the balls back in their direction to help them win. Vanya tried to chastise them for cheating but didn’t enforce the rules too strictly, scared of incurring their ire if she came across as bossy.

Just under the squeals of the players, the encouraging chants of their fallen teammates and the sound of dodgeballs slamming into the walls and floor, there was a faint groan coming from the back office. Slowly, Coach succumbed to the bite on his ankle – received from a child who snuck up on him during his subway ride home last night. His head was pounding so loudly, his body seemed to shake with it. Eventually, the palpitations spread into his chest, seizing his heart in a vice until it ceased under the pressure. With a drop he fell to the floor; dead, but not for long. 

Vanya glanced at her watch. They were approaching the end of their second period yet Coach hadn’t come out to tell them to pack up and change back into their uniforms for the next class. 

Toshio, who was the only person on his team still playing, noticed her preoccupation and held up a hand for the game to pause. “Are we nearly out of time?”

“Yeah.” She said, looking over her shoulder at the closed door to the office. “Should we remind Coach?”

“I’ll go knock on the door.” Niamh offered. She was one of the first people knocked out of the game and was getting bored standing on the side-lines. 

When her light tap wasn’t answered, Niamh hesitantly pushed open the door to his office. “Coach?”

With a ferocious pounce, Niamh was violently thrown to the floor as Coach tackled her back into the main hall. The gasps of the other children were barely heard over her blood-curdling scream, soon stopped as he ripped through her neck within three monstrous bites, the sounds of which made Vanya retch. Watching as Niamh’s lifeless eyes rolled towards them, they all began shrieking for help. 

“Zombie!” People started to scream, everyone finally realising what was really happening. There was no chance of denial now.

The noise they made echoed around the hall, pulling Coach away from his meal as his eyes fixated on where they all stood crowded together. They started to scatter, wanting to escape but he blocked the way to the door. 

There was a fire exit to his right which several people darted for. With a groan, Coach staggered up from Niamh’s body and gave chase. He had just latched onto one of the boy’s legs, tearing a chunk from his calf with a sickly squelch, when Maria threw one of the dodgeballs – hitting him squarely in the face. 

Looking up with a confused expression, gore dripping from his mouth and blood smeared across his face, he was brought to the ground with a hit to the back of a knee and another over his head. Toshio had seized a field hockey stick from the equipment cupboard and was soon joined by other students in beating Coach with whatever they were able to find, hitting until he stopped his attack and Max was able to pull himself free from his limp hands. 

Vanya ran to hold up the bitten boy, who was howling in pain. She supported Max’s weight as best she could, soon helped by Brad who grabbed his other side. They walked over to a bench, trying not to slip on the bloody floor and she started wrapping his leg with the torn fabric from his trousers. 

“We need to get him to the nurse.” She said, barely registering the words coming from out of her mouth. There was a faint ringing in her ears, though it did nothing to mask the sounds of her desperate peers crying in terror as they clobbered Coach to death. 

Brad agreed but suggested they, “Wait until it’s clear. He’s still moving.”

Peeking through her bangs, Vanya saw Coach’s leg was still twitching. The students surrounding him looked a state, small splatters of red on their clothes and terror raging in their eyes as Niamh’s severed neck continued to ooze blood across the floor. 

Not wanting to look anymore, she hastened to the office to grab a first aid kit – stopping on the way to grab a cricket bat; a voice in the back of her mind, which sounded suspiciously like Five, suggested it might come in hand. When she came back, Coach’s body was no longer moving.

“Okay,” Toshio finally protested, seizing one girl by the shoulder as she kept attacking Coach’s body with a petrified screech, as though he would rise again if she didn’t continue beating his corpse. “Okay, I think he’s dead. Or, or dead again? Anyway, we’re safe now. Aren’t we? Is anyone else hurt?”

Vanya tied a tourniquet around Max’s wound as everyone who wasn’t already armed ran for the cupboard to grab something for themselves. Brad was the last to get in and, as a result, was stuck with a tennis racket. After seeing what happened to Niamh he decided to put on a football helmet and shin pads too for good measure, thinking it was a good idea to protect as much of his skin as he could.

“We’ll get sent home after this for sure,” Brad said after he fastened the strap under his chin. “We should grab what we need now, so we don’t have to come back here.”

Laying a hand on Max’s shoulder, who was now lightly sobbing from the pain, he kindly asked which bag was his and promised to retrieve it from the locker room. 

The boys went first, picking up Max when they returned to take him to the main school buildings. Vanya dashed in and out of the girls’ changing room, only stopping to grab her bag before quickly following the boys so she could keep an eye on Max’s tourniquet. While Mom took care of all the major injuries at the Academy, Five usually let her tend to his wounds so she knew not to cut off too much blood from the limb. 

Everyone from their class eventually caught up in the main administrative building, not wanting to stay with Coach and Niamh’s corpses. There was a long line for the nurse’s office, teachers rushing up and down the corridor trying madly to tend to the number of bitten people coming in. 

Brad and Toshio settled Max down on a chair and, after checking his tourniquet one more time, Vanya ducked into one of the offices to change back into her uniform. Keeping her sneakers on, she layered up her clothes so she wouldn’t have to carry anything except the cricket bat. Like Brad, she also thought it was sensible to cover her skin. Clothes might not offer much protection but it was better than nothing so she rolled her sleeves down and made sure her trousers covered her ankles. 

All her books were already in her locker and she left the bag in the office before returning to check on Max, clasping her makeshift weapon possessively. 

Toshio was anxiously confessing to the Deputy Headteacher about what had happened in the sports hall, taking responsibility for killing Coach. Expecting to be reprimanded and the police summoned to take him to jail – despite it all being in self-defence – Toshio was surprised by the Deputy’s tired response. 

“You’re not the only one.” He admitted. “Stay on-site until we know more about what’s going on.”

Without any further instruction, he continued along the hallway to listen to the next person’s account. 

“Maybe I should go help the nurse?” Vanya mused aloud. “I know some first aid.”

“I think you should stay here.” Toshio disagreed, holding his hockey stick so tightly his knuckles were bone white. He didn’t look at her, his eyes roaming up and down the corridor. 

“He’s right,” Brad said. “We don’t know what’s happening or if anyone else is… is like Coach was. So let’s just stay here, okay? Let the teacher’s handle it.”

“There are so many people who are hurt. I could help.” She insisted. While she would like to pretend it was a selfless offer, there was still a part of her inclined towards acts of heroics; believing it would put her in the good graces of the Academy. 

One boy sitting not too far from them looked like he was on death’s door, completely drained of colour and slumped in his chair. A bandage had been clumsily tied around his wrist but not tightly enough to truly stem the bleeding. Vanya was about to walk over – she had stuffed her pockets with some of the bandages from the gym’s first aid kit gym when she was looking after Max and could use them to properly patch him up – when the boy’s eyes suddenly snapped open. 

Arching off his seat, his arms wrapped around the closest person to them and – with a desperation reserved for the near-starving – bit quickly across their back. His victim let out a surprised yelp as he moved to scatter light bites across their torso, scrambling away with the help of other people in the corridor who pulled them apart. He promptly turned on the next person, sealing their fate with another overeager chomp of his teeth. 

Vanya felt a hand land on her shoulder and screamed at the top of her lungs, fearing for a split second that it would be the last sound she would ever make, but it was only Toshio tugging her towards the closest exit. 

Following her class, she scrambled through the door with her cricket bat tightly held in hand. Leaving behind the screams of the newly infected, terrified as everyone slowly came to terms with what was truly happening and what they were about to become. 

* * *

By the time Sir Reginald unlocked the east wing, the Umbrella Academy was exhausted. Everyone except Klaus, who looked annoyingly relaxed from his time spent as a hostage. Despite being tied to a chair in a sealed room, which his teammates had been led to believe was airtight and in which he would suffocate without their rescue, Klaus had managed to nap the entire exercise away. 

The others glared at him as they filed in numerical order into Reginald’s office so he could list their faults. 

He started his reprimand in order too: “Number One, you failed to adequately direct the team and assign tasks best suited to your teammates skill set. Number Two, your arguments with Number One’s plan cost you valuable time. That and Number Three’s preoccupation with staring at her reflection in every mirrored surface she passed.” 

They hung their heads abashedly as he would want them to. 

“You will eat and then we will commence additional training this afternoon which I have designed to address your failures and remind you of proper procedure. If the exercise had been real, your incompetence would have cost your teammate his life. Dismissed.”

Ben let out a slight sigh of relief that he wasn’t specifically targeted in their dressing down, although Five was beyond caring. They had an excellent success rate in the field, the man just searched for the tiniest of faults for an excuse to berate them. It probably gave him some sick satisfaction to break their spirits, Five thought bitterly. 

Stalking out of the room, they waited until they were in the dining room to begin grumbling. As predicted, Luther and Diego were at each other’s throats in seconds – each convinced the other was more to blame, incapable of realising they were as bad as each other. The rest seemed relatively unaffected, although Allison appeared to be trying to shoot Klaus with her eyes, still jealous that he got an easy morning while she had to run around and mess up her hair getting through all the traps Reginald had set up to keep them from their hostage. 

“It’s not my fault I volunteered first.” Klaus eventually complained, sick of her scowl. “If you wanted to do it, you shouldn’t be so slow next time.”

“You could have at least tried to escape,” Diego complained. 

“I had nothing on me and it was a metal door. I’m not Luther, I can’t break it down with a punch. Besides, then he would have complained that I’d ruined the test. You know there’s no winning, right?”

“We could have done better. Dad was right, we shouldn’t have wasted so much time. If Klaus had been running out of air…” Luther tried to argue, ever the martyr. 

“I’m sure next time he’ll decide to really suffocate me, just to teach you all a lesson,” Klaus grumbled. 

“He wouldn’t do that.”

“Oh yeah?” Diego exclaimed, challenging Number One once again. It was instinctual. “Do I need to remind you of some of the times he’s nearly drowned me to test how long I can hold my breath?”

Grace came in to serve them their lunch before they could fight again, but they had to wait for Reginald to take his seat at the head of the table before they could start. When he arrived, he started one of his dreaded records and they tucked into their meal in terse silence. 

As at every meal, Five couldn’t help but glance at Seven’s seat. She wasn’t sat there, was only there for morning and evening meals now that Reginald had insisted she integrate with ordinary children, and yet he still looked for her. It was too much of a habit. 

Logically he knew it was better that Vanya was out of the house. At the Academy she was nearly always alone, relegated to rarely used rooms where she wouldn’t get in anyone’s way. At school, she could make friends and get a chance to learn some social skills – in a few years she’d probably be more adept at engaging with members of the public than any of the Umbrella Academy were. 

Logically it was for the best, but reason wasn’t enough to stop Five missing her presence. There was always some part of him that worried about Vanya when she wasn’t nearby. His greatest fear was that she would get into trouble and he wouldn’t be able to save her. Sometimes it kept him up at night, on those rare evenings he was unable to visit her and remind himself she was there and safe. In an ideal world, he’d always have her with him but that wasn’t realistic. She needed a life of her own and Five would do anything to make sure she got it. He was already planning for their future, squirrelling away money when he was able to get his hands on it. 

Only two more years and, with their final barrier gone, he could put his plans into action.

“Grace,” Reginald called, setting down his cutlery once he finished, “locate Pogo. He was missing from his post and I require his assistance.”

The children ignored his instructions to their robotic mother yet Five was intrigued. Pogo was missing from his post? That was uncharacteristic of him, usually, his nose was buried so far up Sir Reginald’s ass he could barely stray an inch from his side. 

Five would have been even more intrigued to know about the time-lapse in the Academy’s surveillance tapes, during which time Pogo had disappeared from his office, however, Reginald would never share such information with the Academy. From his brief examination of the camera room, it appeared there had been a power cut and yet their back-up generator hadn’t come online. It had truly perplexed him, so confident in his equipment’s infallibility. 

Without Pogo – who had never delivered his message – and with their security cameras still on the fritz, the Umbrella Academy returned to their training session wholly unaware of the anarchy unfolding beyond the mansion’s walls. 

And Five had no idea his greatest fear was being realised. 

* * *

On the school lawn, Vanya’s class reluctantly concluded they’d have to part ways. Everyone wanted to get home, yet, as they were all from different parts of the city, they couldn’t travel together. As they talked amongst themselves, Vanya’s focus was on the main street just beyond the school's heavy iron gates. People were running madly, some of them newly bitten and screaming for help. 

They should stay at the school, lock themselves in one of the outbuildings and wait until someone could collect them. A miracle would have to happen for them to reach their homes without losing anyone else. Too used to no one listening to her however, Vanya didn’t try to argue as they split into travelling groups. Besides, she thought it unlikely anyone from the Academy would have time to collect her. She could be waiting for days if she stayed on campus.

Most of their class lived downtown and only Vanya, Toshio and Brad needed to head in the opposite direction. They parted ways solemnly, Brad and Toshio receiving a few hugs from their friends before they split up, well aware this could be the last time they ever saw each other again. 

Each holding their respective weapons – Vanya with her cricket bat, Toshio wielding a hockey stick and Brad with his tennis racket, shin pads and football helmet – their group tentatively approached the main road. It was clear which people were already undead and their numbers in contrast to the living population terrified them. The zombies moved slowly, hindered by a staggering gait which meant that, as long as they weren’t outnumbered, injured or trapped in a dead-end, their group could outrun them. 

“Stick close,” Brad told her, the three of them huddling closely together as they moved. 

Other people were fleeing down the street, no one quite sure where to go as zombies emerged from every path, and the group of unaccompanied children were given no attention. Everyone was too concerned with their safety to stop to help them, just as they were too frightened to intervene whenever they crossed paths with someone being attacked. 

Vanya watched as one man was dragged down to the ground hollering for mercy as three zombies set into him. She didn’t even suggest to the boys that they try to help. His fate had been sealed as soon as the first set of teeth broke his skin, and yet her stomach churned with guilt. Perhaps it was something everyone running along the street was dealing with but for Vanya, raised in a house obsessed with heroism, walking away seemed to violate every principle she had been raised on. There was nothing she could do though. Seeing the mayhem enveloping the city, she knew the Umbrella Academy would already be out there fighting to save the day. Just the sight of them would bring relief to so many people, knowing that their heroes were ready to save them. Powerless Number Seven had nothing to offer up, nothing of worth, nothing of value. Ordinariness had no place in such an extraordinary day. 

“Look at that,” Brad exclaimed. 

Following his pointed finger, Toshio and Vanya saw an abandoned car. Whoever had been driving it had crashed into a street light and, during their escape, had left the doors open and the key in the ignition. 

“I bet you I can drive it. I’ve already started my driving lessons. Come on, it’ll be much safer than walking out on the street.”

“What about the subway?” Toshio countered, not sharing Brad’s enthusiasm about his driving capabilities. 

“It’s too enclosed,” Vanya said. “We could easily get trapped in there.”

“Exactly.”

“It might not even work,” Toshio said. Nevertheless, he and Vanya hastened after Brad as he ran towards the car, not wanting them to become separated. 

“We might as well try it.”

Turning over the engine, Brad let out a crow from the driver’s seat as the vehicle roared to life. 

Sharing a nervous look, Vanya and Toshio glanced over their shoulders to see if the noise had attracted any unwanted attention. 

It had. 

“Hurry up.” Toshio urged, shoving Vanya into the car and slamming the door shut behind him. They were crammed together in the passenger seat, not wasting time pulling forward the chair so someone could get in the back. 

Putting the car into reverse, the car hood groaned as it was separated from the street light but the engine kept running. Flooring the accelerator, Toshio and Vanya’s heads clunked together as Brad bumpily drove them off the curb and raced down the road. There were people still rushing along the street but they stayed out of their way as they hurtled along. 

Brad and Toshio let out a cheerful cry of victory but Vanya stayed quiet. It seemed she was the only one who noticed the smears of blood on the driver’s door and the scratch marks near the open car roof window. Whoever’s car this was had met an unpleasant end but, having already seen more carnage than she had ever seen before, Vanya tried not to imagine what had happened to the driver once the zombies caught up to them. 

To the Umbrella Academy, she must seem a wimp after everything they had been exposed to in the last five years they’d been going on missions. How many times had she seen them come home covered head to toe in gore? Even today, they would be exposed to far worse. Vanya just hoped they were able to stay safe. Despite their oftentimes fractious attitudes towards her, she couldn’t bear the thought of losing any of them. Especially not Five, her one friend in the mansion. The only person she thought might be out there at that moment, concerned for her safety during this madness. 

Shaking her head, Vanya tried to think positively. With this car they could be uptown in a matter of minutes providing the roads were still open. Soon enough, she’d be locked up safely in the Academy with Pogo to keep her company and Mom there to fight off any zombies who made their way past the mansion’s defences. Then, before she knew it, Five and the others would be walking through the front doors, assuring her that everything was fine and the city was safe. That thought was the only thing that kept her sane as they continued to barrel along the road, keeping their eyes firmly forward and away from the attacks unfolding on the sidewalk, the screams coming from every building and the blood running into the gutters. 

* * *

Walking up to Sir Reginald, who had stepped away from the children during their sparring exercise, Grace quietly delivered her report. 

“I have conducted a complete search of the mansion under my HUAM 7SF subroutine, however, there is no sign of Dr Pogo. I must conclude he is either moving from room to room or no longer in the building.”

Her programming made it impossible for Grace to search outside of the mansion’s periphery, however, there were cameras which she could use to verify that Pogo was no longer within the Academy’s grounds. Reginald instructed her to check them, handing over the key that would permit her into the surveillance room. As she walked away, he re-engaged with the children, challenging their focus and diminishing their confidence. To Grace’s programming, it made perfect sense since the training was designed to turn the children into ideal soldiers. Once they completed their session, she would then step in as their mother and rally their spirits. In the meantime, she had to find Pogo then she really must start dinner. 

Outside, just out of sight of the alley cameras, Pogo slowly began to reanimate. His blood thickened, lungs reactivated and eyes snapped open. Without many thoughts guiding him, Pogo staggered to a stand. The many wounds on his body caused him no trouble, though his head wobbled slightly from the substantial chunk of flesh missing from his neck. Taking his first staggering step, he saw he was alone – his creator long gone to find new prey. 

Like him, Pogo only had one thing on his mind. 

The light above the Academy’s kitchen door guided him and, staggering towards it, his hand reached out to twist open the unlocked handle. 

By the time Grace reached the surveillance room, Pogo was already making his way through the lower floors, his nose and eyes leading him onward in his search for flesh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Editing and uploading from an iPad is really hard. Like, really, really hard. I've had to keep trying to upload because for some reason it kept changing into bold and it's driving me slightly mad. So, I hope it works this time. And if it didn't and there's something wrong, please don't tell me 😅 If you are able to read this and by some miracle it's not all in bold, I hope you enjoy it! 💜 Have a good weekend!


	3. Excision

“Okay, Vanya. What’s your address?” Brad asked, glancing at the street signs. 

Keeping her eyes on the road, she answered vaguely, “I’m about twelve blocks north from here.”

“Nice area,” Toshio observed. “You haven’t lived there long, right? I mean you only started school a few months ago.”

Vanya panicked. It had been ingrained in her ever since she was little: no one should know she was connected to the Umbrella Academy in any way. Five had always said it was to keep her safe, although she suspected Reginald’s motives were borne out of embarrassment at her ordinariness. 

They were in the middle of an attack on the city though. Surely, she thought, that must be a sufficient excuse. She needed to get home. 

“Erm, I was homeschooled before that. Dad decided it was time I went to a normal school.” Vanya said, before giving a random address for a building further up her block. “You can drop me off there.”

She could probably survive the short walk back to the Academy on her own. Probably. 

“Sure. So, homeschooling? What’s that like?” Brad asked curiously, still keeping a cautious eye on the road ahead. 

“Dull.” She answered honestly. Except for the time she was able to carve out with Five and, sometimes, Ben, she had often spent most of the day alone under Pogo or Grace’s tutelage. 

“I can bet.” Brad sympathised. “Before we moved to the city, my family lived in this rural town. The kindergarten only had eight children in my grade. I was so bored. But having no other kids around? I’d go mad.”

“Yeah.” Vanya sighed. “I felt that way sometimes.”

“Although,” Toshio said wryly, “I’m certainly envying everyone at home right now. I mean, at least we were able to find this car. I really hope the others are okay walking.”

“I’m sure they’re fine.” Brad encouraged, not wanting to consider the alternative. 

“Maybe they found transport too,” Vanya suggested. 

Silently, they all prayed that they had.

They were only nine blocks away from the Academy when the engine’s low grumble turned into an unhealthy rattling sound. 

“What’s that?” Toshio asked nervously. 

“The hood was pretty crumpled up from that crash. There might be something loose.” Brad groaned. “Hopefully, it’ll be able to hold out until we get home. Or at least to Vanya’s house. I want to get off the street as soon as we can.”

There certainly seemed to be more activity around them the further they travelled. They were nearing some of the turn-offs for the bridges out of the city now and people had decided to abandon their homes in favour of leaving for the countryside. Cars were starting to queue for the exits and people were flocking down the streets with bags under their arms. 

“Should we be leaving the city?” Brad questioned. 

“No. We might never find our families if we do.” Toshio said. “Let’s just do our best to get home.”

“We don’t want to go anywhere where there are lots of people.” Vanya reasoned. “If people have been infected…”

“It could turn into another bloodbath.” Brad sighed. 

Toshio shuddered. “God. What do you think it’s like back at school? Did you see how many people had been bitten?”

“I’m trying not to think about it,” Brad confessed and Vanya agreed. Some things were too terrible to dwell on. 

They made it another five blocks until the rattle turned into a squeal and, after heroically making it another block, black smoke abruptly erupted from under the hood. They all coughed at the stench, Brad hitting the breaks and bringing them to a stop. 

“Fuck.” He said, summing up their collective thoughts with one word. 

Toshio glanced out the window. “It doesn’t look like there are any zombies around here.”

“There are a lot of people though.” Vanya worried.

“We don’t have much of a choice.” Brad decided. “I can’t get the engine to turn over. We’ll have to walk the rest of the way.”

“Let’s head to the same house, we shouldn’t stay out in the open too long. Then we can call our families and they can meet us now we’re not too far away. Is that okay with you, Vanya? Your house is the closest.”

She nearly choked, pulling in a breath way too fast.

Reginald would have her head just for admitting she knew the Umbrella Academy, but taking them to the mansion?! She had no choice though, they certainly couldn’t stay out in the open. Allison would just have to rumour them into forgetting. 

“Yeah, yeah all right. Let’s go.” She said in an oddly high pitched voice. Clearing her throat, she led the way. 

They stayed clustered together as they walked along, moving in the opposite direction to everyone else on the street who was trying to leave the borough either on foot or in their cars; the road was completely gridlocked with traffic. People bumped into them on the sidewalk, making them all clutch their makeshift weapons tighter, terrified that the next collision would be with a zombie. 

As they reached the top of the avenue leading to the Academy, everything became more tumultuous. There were abandoned vehicles strewn across the road, news of the congestion ahead spreading and prompting people to get out and walk instead. Weaving their way through the crowds, Vanya had just spotted the mansion on the horizon when Toshio grabbed her arm and yanked her sideways. Confused, she looked to her right and saw Brad trying to fight off several pairs of hands which had shot out from a stationary car to seize him, using his tennis racket to try to bat them away. Inside were four zombies, who had died within the car and been unable to unlock the doors. With the windows rolled down however they had begun to prey on unsuspecting people wandering past, reaching out with eager fingers to yank them inside. With one almighty wrench of their hands, Brad began to pass through the window, shouting for help.

Scrambling forward, Vanya and Toshio both dropped their weapons in favour of grabbing hold of Brad’s legs. The adult zombies, despite being dead, were stronger than them and, horrified, they watched as he was hauled out of their grip, the force of having him ripped from their hands sending them crashing to the floor. Scrabbling up, Vanya managed to scrape her hand bloody over the tarmacked road. She seized her cricket bat and prepared for another attempt. 

Toshio remained sensible and held her fast. They couldn’t get closer or they would be bitten too, as Brad had already been. Transfixed, unable to look away no matter how much they wished they could, the pair stood together in petrified silence as they watched all four mouths clamp onto Brad’s throat, just below the buckles of his football helmet. Almost in harmony, they ripped back, decapitating him in one sickening jerk of their heads that sprayed blood through the window and out onto the street. 

Vanya thought she was going to be sick as she watched Brad’s eyes glaze over, his mouth still open, forever caught in a grimace of terror while his blood pooled under her feet.

“Brad!” She shouted, tears catching in her throat. Her voice caught the attention of the zombie closest to them which moved to reach for her. It was enough to jar them both from their traumatised inaction and, as soon as Toshio had picked up his hockey stick, they were running. Running faster than either thought they could, leaving a sickly red trail behind them as they sprinted towards the Academy.

* * *

Unlocking the door, Grace entered the surveillance room with a flourish, her skirt twisting lightly around her legs. It was how she was programmed to walk, always looking the image of perfection; even in a crisis. 

Shutting herself in, lest one of the children pass in the corridor and see something they weren’t supposed to, she rebooted the security cameras and attempted a full restore of the system to recover the missing period during which Pogo had vanished. 

Staring at the screen as it followed the programme she had activated, Grace watched the loading bar patiently – unable to feel frustration over the long time it took to complete. 

Despite the restoration of the system, the footage Sir Reginald wanted was still absent. She would have to search for Pogo some other way. 

Switching the screens onto present time, Grace’s eyes flicked from image to image, scanning the monitors for clues as to Pogo’s whereabouts. She noticed that the phone in Sir Reginald’s study was slightly misplaced from the spot she had placed it that morning, after completing a light clean of the room. Deducing Pogo must have taken a phone call while the Umbrella Academy were in training, Grace was about to ring the telephone company to request information on the caller, when her ocular circuits detected movement in the top left screen. 

Focusing on the monitor, she watched Pogo walk through the kitchen. Next, he appeared on one of the hallway cameras, then passed through the library. He was walking slower than usual, she observed, his left foot dragging along the floor and he appeared to have blood on his clothes. 

Pogo’s current trajectory would take him to the training room, Grace deduced. She would go there to report to Sir Reginald for further instruction, providing medical assistance if necessary. 

Locking up the room before she left, Grace swiftly moved along the corridors to complete her self-assigned task. 

* * *

Heart beating too fast beneath her ribs, Vanya and Toshio’s hands were tightly entwined as they sprinted along the street – terrified of another encounter. It was their connection which stopped him from running past the mansion, Vanya pulling him to a stop as they reached the front door. 

Glancing at the emblem on the gates, Toshio’s head snapped to her so quickly she was surprised it wasn’t audible. 

“This is the Umbrella Academy.” He stated. 

“Yeah.”

“I think the police will have already called them for help,” Toshio stated, looking furtively around them to make sure nothing was going to sneak up from behind. “I don’t think anyone will be in.”

Vanya, too scared to think up an excuse, blurted out the truth: “This is where I live.”

“What?”

Groaning, she dragged them both inside. It was a bit of a surprise to find the front door unlocked, she would’ve thought Pogo had sealed the doors as soon as they found out about what was happening, but perhaps they left it open for her. Abhijat would have taken the car to drive the Umbrella Academy to, well wherever was worst affected she guessed. So there was no way for Pogo to get her. He must have known she would find her way home. 

“Before you ask, no, I don’t have powers,” Vanya said defensively once they were inside the foyer, “I’m just ordinary. That’s why I go to our school now. But I do live here.”

Toshio stared at her for a second, looking for some sign of deception, before blurting, “Seriously?”

She nodded. 

“That’s so cool.” He muttered, glancing around the room in both reverence and anticipation. “Is it okay for me to be here?”

“Usually,  _ no _ . Today, I think they’ll make an exception.”

“And we’ll be safe here?” Toshio asked, nervousness eclipsing his brief excitement. 

What they had both witnessed since the day started was incredibly fresh in their minds and, although on any other day he would have a million questions for his classmate about the infamous group she apparently resided with, with Brad’s blood still splattered on his clothes he only had one focus: locking the doors and keeping as far away from any zombies as was humanly possible in such a tightly packed city. 

“Yeah,” Vanya said confidently, blissfully unaware of Pogo’s corpse wandering the halls as she spoke. “We have excellent security.”

“But,” Toshio pointed out hesitantly, “the front door was unlocked.”

Fidgeting uncomfortably, she gave him the excuse she had come up with. “That was just until I got home. Mom will lock up the house properly now. Come on, let’s go find her.”

Vanya wandered into the centre of the foyer and hesitantly called out, “Mom?”

Her voice echoed around the room but there was no reply. 

“Are you sure she’s at home?”

“Positive,” Vanya said wryly, knowing Grace was incapable of leaving the mansion. Once upon a time, neither had she. 

“She must be in the kitchen. It’s downstairs. Come on.”

Stepping through the archway which would lead them that way, she heard a creak behind her. It sounded like the front door. Spinning on her heel, a warm welcome ready for her family, Toshio was barely able to register the frozen fear that glazed her eyes before he was falling. 

The zombie had latched onto his ankles, crawling forward on its stomach towards its next target. With a pull, Toshio tumbled forward, his hockey stick dropping from his hands and spinning out of reach across the well-polished floors Grace so methodically maintained. 

With a shriek for help, hoping this time Mom would hear her, Vanya dashed forward. As she ran, she heaved her cricket bat up and – with the zombie inches from biting into the exposed skin between the hem of his jeans and top of his sneakers – used the momentum to land a heavy crack over the top of the zombie’s head. 

Hissing, the zombie detached itself from Toshio to defend itself. 

Now able to look at it properly, Vanya saw it was crawling as its legs had somehow been crippled (most likely while the person was still alive, judging by their blood saturated pants). Its gnarled fingers, skin tightly stretched and grey over the bone, scrambled for purchase as it redirected its energies towards her. 

The memories of the man in the park, Niamh, Brad and everyone else they had seen devoured along the way flashed through Vanya’s mind in a rush and, with a strength she had never known she possessed, she swung her bat as fury pounded through her veins. With the next hit, Vanya stopped the zombie’s crawls, the blow dislodging a chunk of skull from its head. Its brain started to splash onto the floor and yet still Vanya kept hitting, a cry of rage reverberating around the hall that she barely registered came from her. Hitting and hitting, not stopping even as Toshio finally picked up his hockey stick and joined in. Possessed with terror, too familiar with the gruesome details of what would happen if they became its next victims, they only stopped when the creature was beyond recognition and their clothes were saturated with its remains. 

“Did it bite you?” Vanya said, having to speak up to hear her voice above the frantic beating of her heart. 

“No.” Toshio gasped. “No. Thanks, you, you...”

He trailed off, feeling sick with the realisation that he had so nearly died. 

“Sure,” Vanya replied, slowly lowering her cricket bat. Cautiously, she circled the creature to properly secure the front door, before grabbing Toshio and backing them away from the dead zombie. 

“Come on, the kitchen is this way. The only other door out is in there, we should check that too.” 

“You don’t think… I mean, erm. No one, no one heard us yelling.” Toshio said uncomfortably. “Are you sure your Mom is home?”

“Definitely. She doesn’t leave the house, not ever.” She replied, no longer caring about secrecy. Allison would just rumour him once it was over. 

“Then, in that case, are you worried she might have been…”

Vanya didn’t need him to finish his question. “Trust me. My Mom’s tougher than she looks. She can handle a zombie. And they definitely can’t handle her.”

“What do you mean?”

She sighed. “My Mom’s a robot, Toshio. My Dad built her. She can’t leave the house and she can’t be eaten.”

Vanya rarely acknowledged the reality about Grace aloud, like several of the other children – especially Diego – she preferred to keep her in the role of her mother. On a day like this, however, she was starting to talk like Five.

Toshio felt too numb to feel anything other than mild surprise. “Oh, okay then.”

“You’re sure you’re okay?” She asked again, feeling wary. If Toshio had been bitten, and didn’t tell her for some reason, Vanya didn’t like her chances of fighting him off. The last zombie had been stuck on its stomach, Toshio was physically fit and larger than her. 

Abruptly stopping in the hall, Toshio yanked up the hems of his jeans and showed her his unmarred flesh, knowing full well why she was asking. 

“Good. That’s all right then.” 

It was Vanya’s turn to stop walking next. 

“What is it?” Toshio asked, tensing as he swung his hockey stick up in preparation. 

Shushing him, she listened carefully. 

“Do you hear that?”

“Hear what?”

“I thought I heard voices upstairs.”

“And you want to go towards the voices?”

“It’s not like we’ve seen any zombies having conversations with each other.”

“So it’s your family?”

“Yeah, but…”

“But what?”

“Why would they be  _ here _ ?” Vanya wondered. “They would have got the mission alarm hours ago.”

“Maybe they needed to come back for something?” Toshio said, feeling lighter at the prospect of the Umbrella Academy being in the house. “Weapons or, or…wait, you don’t think one of them was bitten do you?”

“The infirmary isn’t that way.” She argued, not wanting to even consider the prospect. Losing one of them was one of her worst fears and having it realised wasn’t something she could face. Especially not if it were Five. She didn’t know how she could handle seeing her best friend turn into a zombie. Vanya didn’t know if she could even bring herself to stop him if he were one. “It might not be the Academy. My Father could still be here…”

“Sir Reginald Hargreeves?” Toshio interrupted, finding it hard to picture such an austere man as anyone’s father. He was unable to repress a grimace as his imagination tried to supply one.

“Yeah,” Vanya said, frowning at his response. 

“Oh, that’s, that’s nice.”

She wouldn’t agree with that assessment. 

“He bought us, Toshio. He wanted superheroes and I’m not one.”

“I know. I mean, I, err. I’ve seen some of the press briefings. And, well you know, you’re never there.  _ And  _ I remember him saying about buying the Umbrella Academy, my Mom said it was weird. Oh, I didn’t mean that. Not weird as in creepy or anything. Just… unusual.”

Vanya tried not to roll her eyes as she realised what was happening: Toshio was a fan. She could only imagine Five’s reaction, he hated fans. 

“They’re all morons,” he had once declared after a mission when they’d been lining the street outside the Academy, “I mean, why else would someone willingly hang a photo of Luther’s face on their wall? They’re clearly imbeciles.” 

Hopefully, he wouldn’t think too poorly of Toshio for it.

“If Father’s here, Mom and Pogo would be with him too.”

“Pogo?”

The one person Vanya would usually like to protect but it probably wasn’t a good idea to spring Pogo on Toshio. He had already had enough shocks for the day.

“He’s my Father’s secretary. He’s a genetically modified monkey.”

“A monkey?” Toshio repeated dumbly.

“A chimpanzee to be precise,” Vanya said stiffly. Pogo was the closest thing she considered to a Dad, the one adult in the house who genuinely looked out and cared for her, and she didn’t want to hear a single bad thing about him. 

Sensing her warning tone, Toshio nodded. “Okay. Well, let’s go see them. I mean, if you think that’s a good idea?”

“Yeah. All right.” Vanya said, forgetting about the kitchen. “Let’s go.”

Turning down another corridor, the pair narrowly avoided catching Pogo’s attention as he slowly stumbled through the house. He was following the same noises however and soon he was walking the same path, a shadow behind them creeping along at a deathly crawl. 

As they approached the training room, Toshio became more agitated beside her and Vanya couldn’t deny she felt the same. The idea that had kept her going was being reunited with the others – or, if she were being more honest with herself, Five – and being safe again. As was often the case, she had tried not to think about Reginald but, as she was about to face him, Vanya felt the usual anxiety flood her chest. 

He would find something, undoubtedly, to brand her as a disappointment. That she hadn’t stayed at the school to help the staff, that on her journey she had lost Brad, that in coming to the Academy she had brought a zombie in with her. And a civilian. 

Toshio, who idolised the Umbrella Academy but had always thought Sir Reginald looked and sounded absolutely terrifying, was starting to think that standing outside on the zombie-infested streets would be preferable to meeting him but, before the thought had fully registered in his mind, he pictured Brad’s final moments and decided the man couldn’t be that bad. Even if every word out of Vanya’s mouth suggested otherwise.

The vaulted room, originally intended for balls (not that Vanya could picture Father hosting those), was covered in an array of obstacle course equipment, large mats for sparring and several cabinets full of weapons for target practice. Vanya rarely spent time there, unless Pogo was occupied and she had to step in as Reginald’s secretary. Since attending school, however, she was never called upon. 

The room hadn’t changed a bit since she had last been there; only she had. 

Rounding the archway, Vanya and Toshio paused in the entrance. They were both still slick with blood but, having been repeatedly coated since their gym class that morning, they had started not to notice. Their path towards the training room was clearly marked in streaks of sickly, sticky red – a path Pogo continued to tread along. 

What stopped them on their journey towards much needed help, was the sight of the Umbrella Academy who was, incredibly, still in the house. They were all sparring; Five with Ben, Luther with Diego, and Allison with Klaus. Under Reginald’s close observation, red notebook in hand with new notes continually being added, they didn’t dare raise their heads from their task. They’d also long given up on the idea of going easy on each other, knowing that anyone suspected of doing so would be roundly punished. 

Vanya flinched when she saw one of the eldritch knock Five sideways when he teleported too slowly out of its way. 

“What are they doing?” Toshio muttered. 

“Training.” She replied quietly. 

“Well, yeah. I can see that. But why are they wasting time training when there’s, there’s,” he sighed, “ _ zombies _ outside.”

Five pushed himself up from the training mat, finding a second while Ben struggled to reign in the eldritch’s blood lust. As was so often the case when Vanya was in proximity, his eyes strayed to where she stood of their own accord. It was almost uncanny how he always found her.

She watched his eyes trail over her appearance, suddenly realising what she must look like. 

With Five’s attention on her, she soon drew Ben’s who was nervous about stopping their training. It took another moment however for Reginald to notice their inaction, too focused on chastising Klaus’ lack of effort in repelling Allison’s attacks. 

“Number Five. What is the meaning of this?”

Reginald’s booming voice seemed to snap Five out of his assessment, eyes still roaming over her figure in an attempt to identify a potential injury.

Pushing himself up, he threw himself into a portal and appeared beside her. With his abrupt appearance, Toshio – who had never seen the Academy’s powers up close before – shuffled behind her. It didn’t do much, seeing as he was at least three heads taller than her, but he tried to shrink further away from Five’s burning gaze by hunching his shoulders. 

“What are you doing here?” Vanya asked before Five could open his mouth. 

He gave her a confused look and chose to ask his own question instead of answering her nonsensical one. “Are you hurt?”

Vanya glanced down, looking at her soiled clothes. There was a shard of skull sticking out of her cricket bat too, with a clump of hair attached. On any other given day, the sight would make her want to retch but today she remained unflinching. 

“No.” She stated before repeating, “What are you doing here?”

“Where else should I be?” Five asked cautiously. 

“Number Seven!” Reginald barked, finally noticing her. “Explain yourself.”

She looked at herself again. 

There was blood pooling at her feet. Maybe she had been too overzealous with the last zombie, but it had seemed sensible at the time. They needed to be thorough.

Vanya met Reginald’s eyes and, feeling rather numb to the situation, said the first thing that came to mind. 

“Sorry about the mess.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Brad. But Toshio made it. So far 😅 I hope you all liked the chapter! Have a great weekend 💗


	4. Infection

“Vanya,” Five demanded. “What’s happened? Why are you covered in blood? And who the fuck is this?”

He jabbed a finger towards Toshio who flinched at the motion, ducking further behind her. 

Vanya felt a surge of disappointment as she glanced around at the Umbrella Academy. From the looks on their faces – ranging from horror to bewilderment – it became irrefutable that they knew nothing about what was happening outside the mansion. They weren’t preparing to fight; they weren’t back at the Academy to get weapons or treat injuries.

She thought of all those people dying. People who had come to depend on these six children’s presence and would likely be praying for their appearance while Reginald wasted their time on training. As she had battled her way halfway across Manhattan, as everyone else in the city struggled to stay alive, they’d been safely at home. On the most terrifying day of her life, they were carrying on as if it were any other afternoon.

Vanya wondered, idly, if the resentment settling in the pit of her stomach was the kind they often felt towards her when she was saved from dangerous missions by her ordinariness. 

“This is Toshio,” She said, in retrospect answering the least important question. 

A hand stuck out from behind her and Toshio gave a half-hearted wave of hello.

“He’s from my school. We travelled together when we had to leave.”

Five moved closer, grabbing her upper arms tightly. When he spoke to her again it was in a much gentler voice. It finally seemed to have dawned on him that she was in shock. 

“Why did you have to leave school?”

“Because of the zombies.”

Unlike everyone else battling in the city, the Umbrella Academy hadn’t had the experiences to make them accept the term, and she could see them collectively scoff. 

Five’s eyes narrowed slightly but he persevered. “What do you mean by zombies?”

“They keep biting people. They’re everywhere. They killed Brad just before we got here.” 

Her bottom lip quivered, and Vanya felt Toshio shudder behind her. 

“People are trying to leave the city, but we thought it would be better to get home. Toshio lives near here but when, when we saw how bad things were, we decided to come here together as it was closer.”

“Is Brad another boy from your school?”

Vanya shut her eyes, pulling one arm free from Five’s grip to press a hand to her temples. She quickly pulled away with disgust. Her hair was sticky with gore and with a glance she saw the rest of her was equally bad, not a single stretch of skin escaping from the ruby red splatter. 

Five grabbed the hand and pulled it towards him. “Hey, don’t worry about that. Look, come and sit down and you can tell us what happened.”

When Vanya moved, guided by Five’s hand resting on the small of her back, Toshio closely followed. He only moved out from behind her when she sat and, having no other option to hide, he claimed the chair beside her. 

The others were crowding in on them, but she focused on Five who knelt before her. He was rummaging through his pockets and eventually extracted a handkerchief which he used to mop some of the blood off her brow before it could go into her eyes. While he worked, Reginald took over the questioning. 

“Number Seven.” He said, tone authoritative. Initially taken aback by her appearing caked in blood, his mind flying towards unpleasant scenarios of her powers return, Reginald was once again in charge of the situation. “What happened at your school?”

“Coach killed Niamh. He bit another boy…”

“Max,” Toshio supplied, knowing their classmates better than she did. 

“Max,” Vanya repeated, feeling it was important to remember his name. “Coach bit Max before we killed him, so we took Max to the school nurse and saw how many other people had been bitten. Then a boy who died came back and started biting more people, so we ran. All of us wanted to go home so we split up into groups. Toshio, Brad and I all live in the same area. We managed to get a car, but it broke down a few blocks away. Then on the walk, Brad was attacked.”

“Don’t forget the zombie in the lobby too.” Toshio reminded her, sitting unnaturally still in his chair while warily watching Ben. The eldritch were still waving around him. 

“Oh yeah. Another one followed us inside, so we killed it.”

“If Vanya’s telling the truth,” Luther cautioned, “it might be on the news. We could check the television set.”

Reginald nodded slowly. “I will make some phone calls. Number One, take Number Two and retrieve the body in the hall. Place it in the infirmary for inspection. In the meantime, the rest of you are to stay here.”

“Yes, sir,” Luther said, eager to follow his instructions. 

The semi-circle around Vanya and Toshio parted as everyone started towards the doorway but, abruptly they stopped. 

Peering around Five, who had started clearing her face again, Vanya saw the reason.

“Pogo.” She breathed, heart sinking in her chest. 

While Reginald saw only his missing assistant, Vanya and Toshio focused on the way he held himself; shuffling forward, his eyes trained on the closest person to him, mouth hanging slightly open, a faint groan escaping his lips instead of intelligible words. 

Slowly, they both gripped their weapons tightly and braced themselves for another encounter. It was starting to feel as though this would never end. 

Five noticed what they were doing and instinctively angled himself in front of Vanya, although he failed to see what had caused their reaction. 

Toshio looked at her but, as grief tightened in her throat, she couldn’t say a word. “Don’t go near him.” He warned when he realised she wasn’t going to speak.

Reginald spoke over him, calling out to his assistant. “Pogo. You were to report to me after hostage training this morning. Explain your absence.”

“What’s wrong?” Five asked Toshio, the only one to hear him. 

“He’s one of _them_.”

He looked to Vanya for confirmation, but, her eyes glistening with unshed tears, she didn’t notice.

“You’re sure?” He said. 

“The eyes. How he’s walking. Yeah, yeah, I’m sure. Look, you can’t let him bite anyone.”

“I won’t.” Five said grimly, keeping an eye on his teammates as they drew closer to Pogo without recognising anything was wrong. Casually, not wanting to distress Vanya further, he reached into his jacket to extract one of his knives. She still noticed however and, with a speed he didn’t expect from her, grabbed hold of his arm. 

If anyone else had done that while he was armed, he would have attacked them without a thought. When Vanya did it, however, Five stopped in his tracks and gave her his attention. 

“Five,” she said lowly. “Please. Don’t make him suffer.”

Objectively, Vanya knew that Pogo was already dead and – given the injuries she had seen other zombies endure – it was unlikely they felt any pain. Still, after all the kindnesses Pogo had shown her, she didn’t think she could stand by and watch him endure a slow death. His first one was likely bad enough, and her grief was deepened with guilt that she wasn’t there when it happened to try to protect him or to at least keep him company in his final moments. 

“I won’t.” He assured her, knowing how much she cared about Pogo. Despite all of his past efforts to remind her of his ultimate allegiance to Reginald, Vanya had always been attached to Pogo and, for the rare kindnesses he had shown her, Five couldn’t say he disliked him. 

“Thank you.” She said, exhaling heavily. 

“Thank you.” Toshio echoed, just grateful that he wouldn’t have to take care of the next zombie.

Five raised a brow at him, still wondering who the fuck this boy was to Vanya but in her current state he wasn’t going to try to pursue an answer again. He’d ask later. 

Vanya glanced at Pogo, wanting one last look before he would vanish from her life forever. When she looked, however, she became focused on Reginald who was standing far too close. 

“Pogo.” He demanded, watching his assistant in bewilderment as he continued to stagger towards him. “Pogo, explain yourself.”

“No. You need to get away from him.” Vanya called out, dropping her hand from Five’s arm. 

With one last step, Pogo pounced on his former master without hesitation. 

“Pogo!” Reginald yelled as he stumbled back. 

Luther, who was standing closest to the pair, tried to intervene but a quick move from Pogo knocked him down to the floor. Rearranging himself, he leered over his prey, mouth stretching wide to reveal a full set of gleaming teeth. Having always been seen as the mild-mannered member of the household, Pogo was never considered by the Umbrella Academy as the wild animal he had once been before the experiments began. With his frantic movements on Reginald, clawing at his face, neck and abdomen while littering him with bites, on every piece of flesh he could access around his austere clothes, he reminded them what he really was. 

Allison attempted a rumour, but it had no effect on his departed mind and Ben nearly lost an eldritch – still activated from training – when he targeted it on Pogo. With frightening accuracy, he grabbed the tentacle and would have bitten into it if Luther hadn’t rolled up in time to land a punch to Pogo’s side. 

With him winded, Diego took a chance and leapt onto his back. Using his weight, he threw them both sideways and off Reginald who was left panting for breath with blood saturating the heavy fabric of his suit. 

Grace, moving swiftly through the archway, took over to restrain him – the only person there capable of doing so without putting themselves at risk. She held him tightly, awaiting orders from Sir Reginald. 

Five, having already made his promises to Vanya, teleported over.

Planting his hands on either side of Pogo’s face, mouth still biting despite the absence of flesh to target, he wrenched his head to the side and mercifully ended his tortured existence with a sickening snap. Gripping his knife, he finished the job with a jab through his skull, penetrating down into the depths of his brain, hoping some part of the myths were true, and it would put a permanent end to his waking death. 

While the other children clambered in confusion, outrage and sorrow, Five turned to Vanya and Toshio. They were the only ones who knew and, collectively, they looked at the bites littered across Reginald’s face, chest and hands. 

“Number Five,” he called, failing to see the grim determination on his ward’s face, “Grace had him restrained. Your actions are inexcusable.”

“He tried to kill you. If it had been any other attacker, you would have ordered it.”

“That wasn’t anyone else!” Allison shrieked. “You killed Pogo.”

“That wasn’t Pogo,” Vanya said. 

“Stay out of it Vanya,” Diego demanded, pushing himself up. “You’re not a part of this.”

“Yes, she is.” Five countered. “She’s the only one of us who has seen what is going on. Vanya tried to warn us as soon as Pogo came in that he was a zombie, but as usual none of you listened to her.”

“There is no such thing as zombies,” Luther said, his attention largely fixed on Pogo’s body rather than his team’s argument. “And you should have waited for orders.”

“From who? You had your ass handed to you and Dad…” Five trailed off. 

Grace took over. “We should get your Father to the infirmary so I can treat these wounds. Number One?”

Together, they helped him off the ground. Before they could leave the room, however, Reginald wrenched himself free so he could deliver final instructions. “Carry out your orders as given before. We need the bodies collected for inspection. Grace will complete an autopsy before we jump to any more conclusions.”

After they left, the others gathered on the benches to wait as Reginald had told them to. 

They were each reacting differently to Pogo’s death. Ben and Allison were quietly mourning, Klaus gently rubbing Allison’s back as she cried while he kept an arm around Ben’s shoulders. Diego was trying to argue with Five, but he was ignoring him in favour of resuming his care for Vanya. 

She sat patiently as he carried out his ministrations, finishing wiping the blood off her face and pulling off her ruined jacket. When he was satisfied, he pulled off his blazer to place over her shoulders, still worried she was in shock. 

It was with a calm determination that Vanya finally spoke, however, looking at him and Toshio as she reminded, “You know what’s going to happen now.”

“Maybe there will be a cure?” Toshio offered awkwardly, not advocating the idea he was putting forward but feeling the pressure of politeness as their guest. “You could just lock him up, somewhere away from us all.”

“If he escapes, he could infect someone else,” Vanya said quietly.

“We don’t have any cells.” Five pointed out. “We could lock one of the rooms but…”

Toshio glanced down at his knees. Neither he nor Vanya liked the idea of staying in a building with a living zombie, they’d witnessed far too much of their carnage that day to tolerate it. It wasn’t his place however to make the suggestion.

Leaning forward, pressing his forehead to hers, Five whispered to her, “We could be rid of him for good.”

Meeting his gaze, Vanya saw that gleam in his eye – recognising it from the times he had come back from a successful mission, proud and eager to share what he had done – and felt her heart stutter in her chest.

“What are you two talking about?” Diego snapped impatiently. 

Standing up, Five beckoned the others around him and – with an authority Vanya never ceased to admire – set out his plan.

* * *

“You’re insane,” Allison told him. 

“I’ve been told from time to time.” Five replied dryly. He was positioned strategically, his eyes facing the door and Vanya sitting safely behind his back. With a soon-to-be zombie in the house, he was determined that was where she would stay until Reginald was dealt with. 

“Five,” Ben said lowly, “we can’t do this.”

“Why not? He’s going to turn into a zombie soon.”

Klaus was gnawing on his nails, had been ever since the suggestion was first made, but he pulled them away from his mouth to back Five up. “Yeah, he might bite someone else.”

“Mom will keep an eye on him,” Diego said. 

“Well under her watch, Pogo was attacked and turned, and another zombie got into the house which nearly killed Vanya.”

“And Toshio.” She muttered behind his back. 

“And Toshio.” Five dutifully echoed, though he couldn’t care less about the boy. 

“He’s our leader,” Diego argued. 

“He’s our Dad.” Allison insisted, glaring at Klaus when he snorted derisively. “Whatever. We can’t kill him, what would we even do?”

“We wouldn’t have to go on missions anymore.” Klaus mused, eyes brightening. “No more insane training or getting locked in a cemetery. We could be normal.”

“We’re not normal. We’ll never be normal.” Diego stated.

“This has never happened before, there might be a cure.” Allison pointed out. “We shouldn’t do anything rash.”

“So, we just sit around and hope that he won’t get out?” 

Five nodded in agreement with Klaus. 

“No,” Diego said, “we need to do something. There are people out there dying. We should be helping.”

“How?” Ben asked. “We’ve never run our missions before. Dad was always there, usually the police too. And how do we even know there are people still left to save? From what Vanya’s told us, it’s a bloodbath out there.”

“Exactly, which is why we need to act. Those zombies – if they even _are_ zombies – are out there killing people. We need to put a stop to them once and for all before this spreads further.”

“So, all other zombies are a lost cause who we need to kill, but Dad is the exception.” Ben retorted. 

“You’re not agreeing with them, are you?” Diego explained, pointing at Five and Klaus. 

“Maybe we should vote on it?” Five suggested. 

“Luther will vote no,” Allison said. “And so am I.”

“Me too,” Diego said.

“I say yes,” Klaus answered, echoing Five. 

They turned to Ben who looked torn but, sharing a glance with Klaus, he was reminded of all the wrongs Reginald had done to them and was able to give his answer.

“Yes.”

Allison threw her arms up. “There, it’s a tie. So, we shouldn’t do anything.”

“Vanya hasn’t voted yet.” Five countered.

Diego, predictably, raised a fuss. “No. Absolutely not. She’s not one of us.”

“Vanya might not be in the Academy, but she is a Hargreeves.” Ben stated. “Dad bought her too. She gets a vote.”

Five shifted his weight onto his left leg, moving slightly so Vanya could be seen but was still mostly shielding her. 

She glanced at him, face ashen and body trembling under the rush of adrenaline in her veins. Gritting her teeth, she nodded her head. A second later she confirmed her vote aloud: “Yes.”

“No!” Allison protested. “I’m not killing him.”

“I’ll do it.” Five said with a shrug. If he hadn’t held any reservations over killing Pogo, Reginald would be even easier. It was everything the man had trained him to do.

Toshio cleared his throat and, despite several glaring members staring at him, he managed to hold his ground in front of the Academy. 

“Look, I know this has absolutely nothing to do with me. But you guys haven’t been out there. You’ve only seen one zombie; you have no idea what they’re like. Not like we do.” He said, tilting his head towards Vanya who solemnly agreed. “And what you need to understand is that, as soon as they succumb to the bite, that’s it, they’re gone. There is not a single shred of that person left.”

“Pogo wouldn’t have attacked us,” Vanya said. “Every zombie will.”

“Without hesitation.” Toshio agreed. “And a cure? I’m sorry, but no. Those people are dead. They’re not experiencing some strange disease that will go away with a shot or a stay in the hospital. We’ve seen zombies moving along with impossible injuries. That one in the hall was a tendon shy of losing its legs, and it still kept coming after us. You can lock your Dad up in a room for as long as you want in the hope he’ll come back, but as soon as it starts, he’ll be gone forever. The only thing he will exist for is death.”

Allison sniffed, trying her best to hold back tears. “He’s not dead.”

“Not yet,” Vanya added. “He will be soon though. Just like Pogo. And once he is, he’ll start trying to attack us.”

“They don’t show mercy. Relationships mean nothing to them anymore. This guy might be your father, but he won’t be once he’s dead. He’ll just be another zombie.”

“Shut up.” Diego snarled. “You don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re not a scientist. You’re not a doctor. You’re a nobody. So just shut up!”

“We know more than you.” Vanya bit back, surprised by the vitriol in her voice. “You haven’t seen what we have.”

“Maybe it’s time we do.” Five suggested. 

“What do you mean?” Ben said warily. 

“Vanya was attacked twice just down our street. Let’s go upstairs and look out the windows. Then we’ll know.”

Everyone stood up to go, Toshio reluctantly trailing behind – rightly feeling that he had seen enough but unwilling to stay behind on his own. 

Heading to the second floor, Five led the way and threw open the curtains – which were permanently closed to block the Academy from prying eyes and photographers’ lenses. Vanya and Toshio were resigned as they looked outside, having already seen the trashed cars, the never-ending attacks, the bodies lying in the street which would expectedly seize as they entered the legions of zombies steadily attacking the city, limbs contorting as a new life leached on their corpses before throwing them up to further spread its disease. 

They looked for a moment before moving away, leaving the shocked Umbrella Academy at the windows. When they finally left, Vanya could see the dawning horror shuttering over their faces as the reality of their new lives sunk in. 

“It’s like this everywhere,” Vanya said. “On every street in Manhattan. Maybe the whole city.”

“Maybe the state. The country.” Toshio sighed. His arms were crossed tightly over his chest and he rubbed at his elbows with his hands as if trying to comfort himself. “Who knows how many of us are left.”

Vanya sensed the grief in his voice. 

“There’s a phone in the study. Why don’t you try calling your parents?” She asked kindly. 

“Good idea.” Five encouraged. “We’ll all meet up there in a bit. In the meantime, the rest of us have things to do.”

“Dad?” Allison asked warily. 

“You’ve seen what zombies do, Ali,” Ben said, resting a hand on her shoulder. “We can’t keep him in the house.”

She nodded sadly. “I’ll distract Luther. You know even this won’t be enough to convince him.” She offered.

“Okay.” Five agreed. “Go secure the exits. We need to reinforce them as much as possible. Diego, do you think you can do the same with Mom? Her programming won’t allow any harm to come to him, even if he is already dead.”

Diego jerked his head, quickly stalking out the room with Allison on his tail. 

“Ben, Klaus – I need you to move Pogo’s body. Probably best not to leave him in the house, so perhaps the courtyard until we can bury him. Okay?”

Ben nodded. “We’ll take care of the body in the hall too.”

“Klaus, once you’re done will you check the surveillance room to make sure nothing else has slipped through the perimeter? Pogo should still have the keys on him. Ben, are you all right taking Toshio into the study after so he can make his call?”

“Of course,” Ben said, trying to sound brighter. “Come on Toshio.”

With a kind hand, he led the distressed boy back into the heart of the Academy and away from the windows where – even through the reinforced glass – they could hear the cacophony of chaos just beyond their borders. 

Vanya stood, trying to go with them but Five stopped her with a hand. He only explained himself once they were alone. 

“I’m going down to the infirmary. I want you with me.”

She looked up at him, her brown eyes wide with conflict.

“I don’t need you to do anything.” He assured, stepping closer so he could take hold of her. Tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, he added, “But until things are more stable, I’m not letting you out of my sight. Got it?”

“You don’t need to look after me every second, Five.” Vanya protested. While she had agreed to the need of his death, the idea of watching Reginald die didn’t appeal, not after all the murder she had witnessed that day. “I’ve handled myself so far.”

“I know,” he agreed, eyes trailing slightly to look at her bloodied clothes before returning to her lovely eyes, “and I’m so proud of you. I know it must have been hard and this will be too. But it’ll be easier together.”

She still hesitated, even with his praise, so he added, “Please, Vanya. I need you there.”

He was playing on her unspoken affection for him, which he should feel bad about. His worst fear, however, was something happening to Vanya and, knowing now what she had been through, he couldn’t stand the idea of her leaving his side; where she would be safest. Five needed her close, and he needed her to know that he would protect her at whatever cost. 

“All right.”

“Excellent.” 

Pulling her close, he teleported them to the infirmary. Klaus still hadn’t confirmed the coast was clear yet and he didn’t want to take any chances of them encountering something in the halls.

The disorientation that came with side-jumping worked to his benefit, as he was able to sit her down on one of the beds to recover and slip the cricket bat from her hands without her noticing before he jumped to Reginald’s side.

“Number Five.” He said by way of greeting. Grace had patched up the bite marks and he was rearranging his suit over the bandages. “Status report?”

Holding up the bat, he paused for just a second to see the moment of realisation in Reginald’s eyes – unable to resist a modicum of cruelty to repay him for all that he had inflicted upon them, on Seven most of all, since the moment he bought them – before bringing her weapon down with a great crack over his head. He worked swiftly after that, not wanting to traumatise Vanya, despite a desire that had been long buried to enact an act of proper revenge upon him for every harsh word he had directed at Number Seven, the way he had meticulously shredded apart her confidence, and all the pain he had inflicted upon his teammates in his pursuit of herodom. 

When it was done, he wiped the blood from his face and hands. There wasn’t much he could do about his shirt, but he would take care of that once he had checked in with Klaus and was certain the Academy was secure. 

He pulled a sheet over Reginald’s body, covering over the pool and pulped flesh that sat in the spot his head had once occupied, knowing his teammates wouldn’t derive the same enjoyment he had at the sight. He’d take him to the courtyard soon, after he looked at Vanya. 

Turning around, Five was surprised to see that she had been watching the entire time. He expected fear and disgust as she met his eyes, but he was instead met with a guilty smile.

Impatiently, he jumped to Vanya’s side, wanting her close again. She surprised him, throwing her arms around his neck and pulling him tightly against her chest. If he had just come home from a mission, he would be hesitant to return it but since they were both already covered in blood, he had no reservations about accepting her embrace and cradled her tightly against his side. 

Vanya laughed against his neck, high pitched and nervous. 

“Are you still in shock?” He asked. 

“A little. I can’t believe we’ve just done that. I mean... he’s dead.”

“I know.” Five said smugly.

“We always talked about running away from him but now we don’t have to.”

Taking her face into his hands, he looked down at her. “Just you wait, Luther will be trying to take over the Academy now.”

“He can’t make you.”

“No. He can’t.” Five boasted. He wouldn’t stand a chance in making him do anything he wouldn’t want to. Too kind to use Vanya against him, too naive to realise they weren’t really needed. The city, the world, would do just fine without them.

Vanya’s eyes seemed to shine. “We’re free?”

“Well,” he cautioned, “we still seem to be in the middle of a zombie apocalypse. Although it doesn’t say much about Dad that living in a world of zombies seems preferable to spending another day under his roof.”

She sobered up at the reminder. Pulling back, Vanya tugged the cricket bat out of his hands, and he let her take it.

It hadn’t all been words before, he was fiercely proud of how she had defended herself, fought although she had never been taught to. Five almost wished he could see her in action, although he knew he was too protective to allow that to happen before his eyes.

“What are we going to do now?”

“I’ll get rid of the body first, then we’ll go to the study. I want to speak with the others to make sure the building is secure. Wait here for me.” He asked, before walking back to Reginald and jumping him into the courtyard. 

Ben and Toshio had just finished putting Pogo in the greenhouse. When they saw the sight of him, Toshio barely batted an eyelid, but Ben blanched. 

“Dad?”

“Done. Once you’re finished up here meet us in the study.”

“Okay,” Ben said nervously. “You know Luther won’t be happy right?”

“Is he ever?” Five asked rhetorically before teleporting back to Vanya. Holding her tight, he took them into the study. 

There had always been a strict no enter policy in there for the children and Five couldn’t resist walking over to the desk and sitting down in Reginald’s chair. 

“Look at this,” he said, “there are messages on the machine.”

Pressing play, there came a range of imploring requests for their presence from various departments across the city. Picking up a piece of paper, Vanya jotted down the names so they could phone back. They had just finished when Luther stalked into the room, tears prickling his eyes and ears red with rage. 

“You killed Dad!” He accused Five with a thunderous bellow.

Vanya flinched, so he stood in front of her. 

“Yes. I did.” Five confessed easily. It took all his willpower not to sound smug, knowing they needed level heads.

“Why, why on earth would you do that?”

“He was already dead, Luther. He’d been bitten, remember. We all took a vote…”

“Why wasn’t I there?” He demanded. 

“Allison knew you’d vote no. But everyone else said yes. So, I killed him.”

Luther baulked. 

“How?” He asked. His voice had abruptly gone small.

“I bludgeoned him to death with a cricket bat.”

“Did he suffer?” Luther said, down to a whisper. 

“No.” He lied, trying to be reassuring but as the tears continued to fill Number One’s eyes, he wasn’t sure he had succeeded. 

“Luther,” Vanya said, speaking up. She edged out from behind his back. “There are still people outside being attacked. Maybe we should think about sheltering people inside?”

Five shook his head immediately, not wanting anyone who was potentially infected anywhere near them, but Luther seized the idea.

“Yes. That’s what Dad would do. We have to look after people.” He agreed, grasping at the plan for something to distract him from his pain. “We can put them in the front rooms.”

“And what if any of them have been bitten?” Five argued. “We’d have a bloodbath in our own house.”

“Mom can watch them. It’s not like she can be bitten. Come on, we can’t leave people out there.”

Ben, Toshio and Klaus came into the room, none of them looking very happy after moving two corpses. 

Vanya pulled Toshio towards the desk and gave him the phone before moving back to the others. 

“Was there anything on the cameras?” Five asked Klaus quietly, not wanting to interrupt Toshio’s attempt to call home. 

“Nothing. I checked everywhere. Only us.”

“Was there any footage of Pogo being attacked?” Vanya said warily. If there was, she didn’t want to see it, but it could help them understand how it had happened. 

“No. There was a power cut, and we lost the footage. Mom already tried to restore it.”

“What do you think caused the power cut?” Ben wondered. 

“Given everything that’s happening, the grid might have been overloaded. Or there could have been incidents in the power plants which caused a temporary shutdown. We’re back on mains power now and the phone lines are working, so whatever it was couldn’t have been too severe.” Five reasoned. 

“Ben,” Luther beckoned, “we’re going to try to get the non-infected off the streets. I want them put into the front foyers and waiting room. There are locks on those doors so we can keep them quarantined for a while until we know they’ve not been bitten. Vanya, how long would you say between a person being bitten and becoming a zombie?”

Vanya blinked in surprise, failing to think of any other time Number One had asked her opinion. 

“It’s hard to say. A lot of people we saw were killed by their wounds and came back a few minutes later. I don’t know how long it is for people who survive their bites. Coach was bitten before he came to school, but I don’t know how long ago that was.”

“Given the timings of this, it seems reasonable to say it must happen within a day. If it were going on longer than now, we would have heard about a rise in cases of people being bitten.”

“If we find anyone with a bite, we can put them outside again?” Ben suggested.

“They’d bite someone else.” Luther pointed out.

Five knew the sensible course of action was killing any of the infected but, sensing his teammates' tension, he deferred the subject. “We can figure it out later.”

“Yeah,” Luther agreed, “let’s just get everyone in that we can.”

“My parents are at home,” Toshio announced with a relieved sigh, joining the group. “They were going to try to come here but I told them it would be safer to barricade themselves in the apartment then try to walk four blocks over. I gave them the number so they can check in a few hours from now, I hope you don’t mind?”

“Of course not,” Ben reassured. “Look, we’re going to get other civilians in and you’re pretty good at spotting zombies. What do you say about standing on the balcony upstairs and checking the people coming in?”

Ben led a hesitant Toshio out the study, closely followed by Luther. Klaus stayed where he was, not interested in going on missions now no one was around to force him to. 

“Klaus,” Five said, “do you still have Pogo’s keys?”

“Yeah.” 

“You could lock the doors between the front rooms and the rest of the house. That way if there is an incident where the civilians are, it can’t spread to us.” 

“All right. I don’t have to go near the zombies though, do I?”

“No,” he promised, knowing Number Four’s aversion to committing violence on missions, “just lock the doors. Please.”

Klaus nodded, looking relieved before following Five’s request. 

“Oh, and if you see Diego,” he called after him, “get him to go with Grace to check on the civilians coming in.”

“Will do,” Klaus yelled back.

* * *

Vanya had shown Toshio to one of the guest bedrooms, unsure he could stay on his feet for much longer. He had helped Luther and Ben with the survivors but had warily kept his distance from everyone coming in, the hockey stick he had taken from their school still tightly clasped in his hands. 

After giving him a spare uniform so he could change out of his bloodied clothes, Vanya had gone to her room to clean up before heading back downstairs. Five had locked the doors between the front rooms and the rest of the Academy, leaving the survivors with Mom to carry out a quarantine period. Grace held a pair of keys so she could flit between both sides, getting food and medical supplies for their guests while checking on the children – for whom she was now their sole care provider. She had attempted to activate her grief training upon learning what had happened to Sir Reginald, but only Luther showed any interest. 

Vanya had spoken to her about the symptoms she recognised from the recently bitten or turned, and Grace was to watch out for bite marks or bloody wounds that anyone wouldn’t let her examine. Any suspicious cases were to be reported to Five and Vanya knew what his course of action would be. 

“How far do you think it’s spread?” Allison nervously asked Luther just as Vanya entered the study. They had made it their base since it was home to the mansion’s only telephone and television set. 

Luther didn’t answer, too busy trying to turn on the television set; Reginald had never let them use it, so none of the Academy knew how it worked.

“Luther,” Vanya said shyly, stopping next to him, “I can turn it on if you want. We have a set at school.”

He glanced up, looking at her curiously as if surprised to see her there, before extending her the controls. 

Flicking on the screen, Vanya took a seat next to Five who slung a protective arm around her shoulder while she flicked through the channels. 

Every single one had stopped broadcasting. 

Reaching the tenth and final channel, Vanya stopped. The static-filled the room, their eyes trained on the emergency screens, each one stating there was no broadcast signal. 

“Is... is that it?” Klaus said.

“There are no more channels.”

“Maybe it’s the television,” Luther suggested, grasping for hope. 

“It’s not.” Vanya insisted. “It says no broadcast signal, that means the stations aren’t broadcasting anything.”

“Oh fuck.” Klaus exclaimed in panic, pushing himself up from where he had been sandwiched on the sofa between Diego and Ben. “That’s it. There’s no one left, is there? I’m going to be surrounded by ghosts until one of the zombies comes after me.”

“Ghosts?” Wait, Klaus – can you talk to Dad?” Luther asked excitedly. 

“No,” Klaus said, sounding a little happier. “I was worried he would pop up to start bossing us around from beyond the grave, but he’s moved on. Must be eager to start those tennis matches with Stalin. Those totalitarians have got to stick together, you know.”

“Klaus.” Luther admonished. “Dad’s not in hell.”

“We all grieve in our own ways, don’t ruin mine.”

“There must be other people alive,” Ben whispered, hoping it more than he was able to believe it. 

Vanya shared his pessimism. Leaning heavily into Five’s side, she stayed curled there as he worked to rouse them from their mounting anxiety. 

“What’s important is keeping us and everyone else in the house safe.” He reminded, rubbing Vanya’s back soothingly.

“For how long?” Allison asked despairingly.

The children were restless, but they were at a loss for what to do. Vanya had barely survived on her own, and she knew there was nothing she could do to protect the city. Allison’s rumours didn’t work, Klaus’ powers offered no defensive capabilities, and it had taken Diego, Luther and Grace working together just to take down Pogo, with Ben nearly losing an eldritch in the process. Luther and Diego talked about going out to fight yet – without knowing the extent of the hordes they would face – the others had quickly talked them out of it. No one knew what to do.

Except Five.

“Allison, why don’t you go and see if you can help Mom? If there’s anyone who won’t let her inspect them, rumour them. We should reinforce our defences too. Luther, why don’t you move the heavier pieces of furniture in front of all the windows and doors on the first floor? If an attack comes, that’s where it will come. Ben, would you help?”

Glad for something to do – anything that could take their mind off their losses – they agreed and hastened away. 

“We’ll need to put the survivors in guest rooms once we know there are no more infections. Klaus, Diego. Can you go check that they’re all unlocked and made up?”

Diego nodded but Klaus didn’t respond. 

Vanya glanced up from where she had burrowed her head into Five’s neck, enjoying the brief sensation of safety. 

Klaus was looking scared again and, instantly paranoid, she started looking for danger. As she followed the line of his gaze, Vanya expected to land on a zombie who had somehow broken through the Academy’s defence system and her fingers twitched around the handle of her cricket bat. Instead, everyone’s eyes were drawn towards Diego and the blood dripping off the ends of his fingers from the open wound hidden under his jacket cuff. 

“Diego?” Klaus breathed, white with terror. 

He saw what had caught their attention and quickly slapped a hand over the weeping bite.

“I-I didn’t want you to worry.” He excused. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I know. How cruel of me. But I’m basing this on Shaun of the Dead. This chapter is essentially the equivalent of them arriving at the Winchester pub and one of the core group had to be bitten and then killed (Reginald/Barbara) and then someone else needed to be bitten (Diego/Ed). I thought about all the Hargreeves, went, hmm who wouldn’t I mind being infected, and not 2 seconds later thought, Diego 😄
> 
> Last chapter will be up next week and then I will get back to work on Leyden Jar which has long been abandoned. Hope you liked this and have a great weekend! 💕


	5. Recombination

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks Julie for looking over a few paragraphs in this chapter - I edited it so many times I couldn't tell if it made sense anymore 😅

“Diego!” Klaus yelled. “You idiot, why didn’t you tell us?”

“There was so much to do.” Diego shrugged, nervously tugging his sleeve down to cover up the injury from prying eyes. “I wanted to help as much as I could. Then I figured I’d go upstairs and lock myself in one of the rooms before it… you know. _Happens_. And then I’ll, erm, deal with it.”

“Did Pogo bite you?” Five asked, putting a hand on Vanya’s shoulder to stop her moving out from behind him to try to properly tend to his wound. 

“Yeah. When I tackled him. I didn’t even notice at first.”

“Is this why you voted against killing Dad?” Klaus said, increasingly horrified. “Because you knew we’d…”

Eyes widening, he turned on Five. 

“You’re not killing Diego. You can’t!”

Vanya shut her eyes, feeling the tension from the room wash over her. She knew that Five wouldn’t want to kill Diego. They’d fought plenty of times – usually when Five was retaliating on her behalf for something Diego had done or said – but they were teammates. And yet she knew Five, logical to a fault, would do it if he considered it necessary. 

“It’s not the same as Dad,” Klaus continued, speaking over Diego who was trying to shrug his mortality off as if it were nothing, “all right. We all know what it came down to with Dad. It’s not like any of us pretended to like him. Well, except for Ali because it gets her stuff. And Luther; but that’s just because he doesn’t know any better! Diego isn’t Dad. There are other options here.”

“Klaus,” Diego tried to reason, “you can’t keep a zombie in the house.” 

“Why not? It’s like you say, we’ll just find a room to lock you in.”

“What if I get out?” He said patiently.

“We’ll chain you up too,” Klaus suggested desperately, tears prickling his eyes. “Don’t give up, Diego. Please. Not now. Not now we’re finally free from Dad. Come on, we’re going to have so much fun.”

Five’s hand was starting to dig uncomfortably into Vanya’s shoulder, so she tugged it from her body and twisted their fingers together instead. He glanced over at her, giving her a small smile of comfort but she couldn’t return it. 

“Klaus is right.” She said, attracting his grateful attention. “We should at least try. We can keep him on a floor by himself, lock several doors between us and him. There are the cameras so we would know if he got loose.”

“I’ll monitor them, I promise.” Klaus quickly offered. 

“See,” Vanya said. “We can make this work.”

Five nodded slowly. “All right. But we need to act now, we still don’t know how long it takes for it to happen. Diego could turn any minute for all we know.”

Diego shook his head. “No, this is stupid. Just kill me. Or, or I’ll do it. It will be safer that way.”

“No!” Klaus insisted. 

“Klaus come on. I don’t want to be a zombie.” He said. “If I’m going to die, I want it to be on my terms.”

“There might be a cure,” Klaus suggested, despite their negativity on the possibility of such. “Please, don’t give up hope. I can’t lose you.”

“Let’s ask Mom,” Vanya said. “She has her medical training, maybe she’ll have a suggestion.”

Five nodded. “I’ll get her. But Diego shouldn’t be wandering around.”

“I’ll get handcuffs!” Klaus volunteered, eagerly sprinting from the room before Diego could try to argue against being saved again. 

Taking Vanya with him, Five crossed into the front of the house to get Grace for her medical opinion. As they walked, he warned, “You know a cure is unlikely, don’t you? It’s like Toshio said, they’re dead as soon as they become zombies.”

“Maybe there’s a way to stop it before they turn?” 

“Just don’t get your hopes up, Ven.” He asked, squeezing her hand tightly. 

Grace moved Diego into the infirmary – still bloody from Five’s earlier murder. His teammates blanched at the sight but Five was unapologetic. 

Inspecting the bite, Grace followed the steadily blackening veins surrounding it and concluded it would reach his heart soon. “I suspect once that happens, death takes place.”

Diego was doing his best to remain stoic but groaned at that. 

“Perhaps an earlier intervention,” she mused, “amputation could have prevented the spread. Though that is speculatory without further tests. I could attempt a blood transfusion, see if that has any effect.”

“Do it.” Five said, taking over in Reginald’s role to issue her orders. She couldn’t function without them, something Vanya had quickly realised at her statuesque behaviour between instructions. 

“We need to move him somewhere more secure first though.” He added as Grace gathered the necessary supplies. 

“There is the vault in the basement.” She said. “It locks externally.”

“There’s a vault in the basement,” Klaus said, sounding horrified. “Oh god, don’t tell me Dad was into kinky shit, I don’t think I can handle hearing that.”

“No, dear,” Grace assured. “It was built for power containment in case any of you children experienced a loss of control.”

Vanya accepted the explanation, but she saw Five was frowning. 

“Then why haven’t any of us seen it before? Which one of us is it built for?”

“I am unable to answer as my confidentiality functions are still in place,” Grace replied, her robotic words in conflict with her motherly tone. 

“We can alter them later.” Five said thoughtfully. 

“Later,” Klaus stressed. “Let’s move Diego.”

Five and Klaus moved him on a gurney, his hands cuffed to the sides while Grace held a blood bag and IV injected into his afflicted vein. Vanya would have waited behind, feeling like she was intruding on the quiet conversation between Klaus and Diego, but Five still wasn’t prepared to let her out of his sight. He soon pulled her away once Diego was settled into the odd room, all sharp angles and heavy walls, needing to tell the others what had happened.

They were all gathered back in the study, having completed their assigned tasks. 

“Diego was bitten.” Five announced as soon as they walked through the room. 

When Vanya stared at him, bug-eyed at his insensitivity in broaching the subject, he stared back not understanding his social misstep. 

“What!” Luther yelped, springing up from his seat. He had been sat in front of the television, enjoying a moment to play with the set after all the years he had been told to stay away from it. There was still nothing broadcasting, but he found the mechanics fascinating. 

“Was there another attack?” He demanded to know, looking for something he could beat in retribution. 

“No. It happened when he grabbed Pogo.” Vanya said, taking over before Five could worry them further. He was her favourite person in the whole world and an absolute genius at most things, but it turned out everyone was terrible at something; for him it seemed to be delivering bad news gently. 

“Where is he now?” Allison asked.

“There was a vault in the basement, Dad had it built.” Five replied. “Mom told us about it. There’s an elevator in the hallway just outside his office, we’ve left it uncovered for now. I looked around, it seems strong enough to contain him once he turns.”

“So, he’s still… alive?” Allison said tentatively.

Ben swiftly stood up and hastened out the door. 

“Mom’s doing her best to keep him comfortable,” Vanya reassured. “She’s giving him a blood transfer and that might help.”

“But it might not,” Allison said, sounding on the verge of tears. 

Luther, who had been ready to rush downstairs to offer assistance, waivered where he stood. One look at her Allison’s convinced him to stay, and they huddled back together on the couch. 

Tugging on Vanya’s hand, Five led her upstairs towards his room. 

“Maybe I should go check on Toshio,” Vanya suggested as they walked, feeling at a loss of what to do now the building was secure and Diego was under Grace’s care.

“Later.”

When they got inside his bedroom, Five firmly shut the door behind them. He stayed leaning against it while Vanya settled down on his bed, feeling weary as she leant her cricket bat against his side table. She had made it through the day mostly on adrenaline and now that things were settling into this odd state of existence she was starting to tire. The weight of what had happened, what would happen in the coming days made her feel as though her feet were made of lead. How had they gotten here? In the middle of a zombie apocalypse as Five had called it, orphans on paper, free in their own right. Her only father-figure dead, Diego soon to be. Out of all the children in the mansion, Vanya had always struggled the most with Diego but the thought of him becoming one of those creatures made her want to retch. No one deserved that fate.

“How are you?” Five asked tersely. 

“I don’t know.” She answered honestly. “It’s been such a strange day, I don’t know what to make of it.”

Five nodded back, making a mess of his hair as he ran his hands through it. “You would have thought after seeing interdimensional creatures explode from Ben’s chest every week, nothing could phase me anymore. But this? This is definitely a step up.”

“It is.” Vanya sighed. 

“We’ll get through it though.” He vowed. 

“I know we will.” She agreed, feeling infinitely safer now she was back with Five. The thought of reuniting with him was what kept her going when she was out on the streets with Toshio and Brad, walking through all the terrors and losses. “But what about Diego? And Pogo? How are things ever going to be the same now?”

“Diego might be okay.” Five said, making an effort for her. 

Vanya rubbed at her dry eyes, too tired to cry. “We’re not around the others anymore Five, we don’t have to pretend.”

“I’m not.”

She gave him a look. 

“Well… I suppose it’s unlikely. Highly unlikely.”

“I don’t know how Klaus will handle it. Or Ben.” Vanya sighed. “If it was you, I don’t know how I would cope.”

Five crossed the room, crawling onto the bed so he could pull her close. “Neither do I. When I saw you today, Vanya. I don’t think I’ve ever been so scared in my life. I thought that blood was yours. And then when I realised it wasn’t, I was still scared. To think how close I was to losing you forever and I hadn’t even known you were in danger. I wasn’t there to protect you.”

“You didn’t know.” Vanya excused, not wanting him to feel bad. 

“You shouldn't have been out there, I shouldn’t have let it happen. I should have fought harder to keep you at home.” He insisted. 

“He wanted me out of the way. So, I wouldn’t distract you.” She reminded. “You know what he’s like once he’s set on an idea.”

“Never again.” Five snarled. “I just wish I’d killed him sooner.”

Vanya shuddered lightly, unsure of her reaction to his words. Such casual discussion of murder should be repulsive and yet she only felt warm. 

“He wasn’t a zombie earlier.”

“That didn’t matter. We’ll be much better off without him.” He said confidently. 

“Will we? You don’t think someone will try to put us into care?”

“No. Grace is still around, we can pass her off as a caregiver. No one will look into the paperwork too carefully, they won’t know she’s not a real person. They won’t have enough time to investigate, not after all this has happened.” Five declared, his mind perpetually in overdrive. “Then we only have to get through another year or so and we’ll be old enough that it won’t be an issue. I’m sure we’ll inherit something, and we can get jobs.”

“If there’s a world left to get jobs in,” Vanya added darkly. They were high enough upstairs not to be able to hear the commotion on the streets, but she imagined it was still there, becoming all the more chaotic as night set in and people could no longer see the enemy they needed to escape. 

“I reckon we can handle living in a post-apocalyptic wasteland.” Five said. “All those survival classes will finally pay off.”

She chuckled, not because she found the idea funny but just to lighten the mood that was feeling decidedly bleak. 

“I’ll build you the finest house out of cardboard boxes and hunt whatever mutant wildlife there still is for us to eat.” He promised with a smile.

She laughed genuinely that time. “My hero.”

Five nuzzled the side of her head. “We’ll be fine.”

Vanya wanted to sink into the mattress, finally able to relax now they were locked inside his bedroom, yet she forced herself to stay awake.

“Shouldn’t we be doing something?”

“Like what?” Five said, chancing a kiss to her hair which was back to its usual neatness after she had freshened up earlier. He loved how soft it was. 

“I don’t know. Checking food supplies? Monitoring the people downstairs in case anyone has been bitten? Asking Mom if she needs help with Diego?”

“You need to rest, Vanya.” He disagreed, smoothing her hair back in an attempt to lull her to sleep. “You’ve had a harder day than any of us.”

“I should at least check on Toshio. He’s being kept apart from his family by this, it must be hard for him.”

“Did you know him before today?” Five asked, a curious edge to his voice. 

“Not really. We sometimes worked on assignments together in class or said hello, but I wouldn’t say we had a proper conversation before today.”

Beside her, Five seemed to relax. “Not a close friend then?”

“No,” she said teasingly, “I already have a best friend. And you know how jealous Ben gets.”

He pulled away so he could look down at her face. He sighed with relief when he saw she was joking. 

“You know no one can replace you,” Vanya said more seriously, hiding her face behind her bangs. Five instantly brushed them aside, wanting to see her. 

“I’ve missed having you around, Vanya.” He confessed. “I feel like I’ve barely seen you in months.”

“I think that was intentional.” She sighed. “Did you notice how our schedules changed when I was enrolled?”

He had, they’d both discussed it a month after Vanya started school. New training sessions to coincide with her return home, violin performances for Pogo during the Academy’s recreation hour. They barely caught sight of each other in the corridor before the other was squirreled away.

“Dad really was an asshole.” Five said, enjoying talking about their owner in the past tense. He cuddled her tightly against his side. No one would ever take her from him again.

“Most people with a knighthood are.” Vanya quipped, making him laugh. 

“Sir Reginald.” Five snorted. “Do you think it’s a hereditary peerage? Could you imagine Luther going around as Sir Number One in his honour?”

“Only so Allison can be a Lady.”

“Probably.”

He kept stroking her hair, nose rubbing over her temple while his arms kept a firm hold around her waist. 

“I’d put up with another year of Father if it meant spending every day with you.” She confessed into his chest. Despite his constant put-downs, his reminders of her disvalue, the bitter way he labelled her ordinary, she still would have rather stayed in the Academy than go to school; all because of Five. “You’re my favourite person.”

“You’re my favourite.” He replied immediately, not wanting her to think for a second her feelings weren’t reciprocated. She blushed prettily and Five couldn’t stand it a moment longer. Vanya let out a stunned sound as he pressed his lips to hers, eyes widening before fluttering shut. He kept playing with her hair, smoothing his hand over the strands as he pressed kiss after kiss to her mouth, persisting until he felt all the tension associated with her surprise leave her body and she relaxed into his caresses. Every thought of the war outside faded and the world shrunk until it was just them on the bed, where nothing could intrude upon the moment. 

A thud from downstairs made the bedframe shudder. They broke apart so quickly Vanya’s forehead cracked against Five’s nose and they groaned. 

“What was that?” She asked, forced back into reality. 

Five held up a hand, motioning for her to stay silent while he strained to listen. 

There was another loud crash which seemed to come from the front side of the house; the boundary facing the zombie-infested streets.

“Oh god, they’re trying to get in.” Vanya panicked. The memories of the day flooded back, and she stumbled from the bed to grab her cricket bat, cursing herself for putting it down. 

Five hastened after her, steadying her with his hands on her shoulders. “It’s okay. We’re barricaded in. Nothing’s getting inside. I’ll go to the security room and check the cameras to see what’s happening in the front rooms. If it looks like there are any chances of them breaking through, we’ll reinforce. Okay? Just, stay here.” Five implored. He disappeared into a portal, gone for a half a second before he popped back to press another kiss to her lips. Task done, he left again. 

She contemplated listening to him for a second, but soon threw open his bedroom door and raced downstairs. While they might be trained superheroes, there was no way the Umbrella Academy could repel an attack from the zombie horde outside by themselves. Everyone would need to come together, civilians included, to fend off an invasion. 

The idea of Five facing it was also too much to bear; she needed to be there, she would never forgive herself if something happened to him while she was hiding upstairs. Not after the freedom they had won and what they had just shared. It was too precious to lose. 

Feet sliding on the polished floors, Vanya dashed along towards the main foyer. The Umbrella Academy was stood warily beside the barricaded door, waiting as it continued to endure blow after blow. Five threw her an exasperated look when he saw she was there, wasting no time to tug her behind his back where he could quickly grab and teleport her to safety. 

“What do we do?” Allison asked nervously, instinctively looking to Luther who seemed lost for words. There was a thin sheen of sweat across his face, skin a pallid white and he looked like he was about to be sick. Vanya sympathised. While for her it was Pogo, she knew Luther too was dealing with the loss of the person he considered his father. 

“Ben,” Five said, taking over, “take Klaus and go up to the balcony. You can pick off anyone who gets past us. Allison, you’ll go with Vanya to help Grace keep the civilians safe. Luther, you stay here with me.”

The door shook again, Allison running across the foyer to snatch Vanya by the arm. She resisted the tug, wanting to stay by Five’s side as the entrance finally gave way under the weight of the battering ram being hurled against it. 

A light shone through, blinding them all to the danger which advanced. They could only hear stomping feet, heavy and constant on the floor, a sound that instantly put Vanya at ease: zombies didn’t walk like that. She let her bat, which she had raised defensively, fall back to her side.

“Forward movement.” Someone shouted gruffly.

“Two clear.”

The lights moved, dust settling from the broken doorway, and she could see the urban camouflage 

“Watch that door.” Another person yelled. 

Shots were fired on the street in constant waves. Peering around Five and the small army which had broken through their house, Vanya could see several waves of soldiers moving in formation to kill the zombies outside. With an efficiency she admired after relying on a makeshift weapon all afternoon, they quickly established living and dead targets on the street by calling out for civilians – who still possessed the capacity to intelligently respond. 

As the small force in their entryway started calling out that the space was clear, a man pushed his way forward. He was wearing a blue suit, in stark contrast to the dull grey tones of the soldiers around him. Armed with a golf club, he looked troubled, glancing at the soldiers for clarification that it was all right to proceed, but when he locked sights on the children his expression cleared.

“Umbrella Academy.” He said, sighing with relief. There was a groan behind him, and he quickly turned to hit a zombie – who had managed to get through the defences swarming the avenue – in the head with his club. He’d clearly been using it to defend himself all day, moving with a swiftness Vanya recognised. When it fell back another soldier dragged it back into the street. 

“You’re alive.” The man enthused as he turned back to face them. 

“Deputy Romero?” Luther replied, the only one who paid enough attention at formal events to recognise the Deputy Mayor on sight.

“Please, call me George.” He said. “I called before. I spoke with the Police Commissioner who also called and told me he had arranged a rendezvous with you, but no one turned up. Once the National Guard was mobilised, I asked for a small group to come look for you. We were worried that your headquarters had been attacked. How are you doing?”

“Surviving,” Ben said hollowly.

Glancing around, he asked, “Is Hargreeves here?”

“He’s dead.” Five replied shortly.

George’s eyes widened but the surprise didn’t stay with him long. Like Vanya, he’d had an immersive day: first witnessing the death of the Mayor and then working with the staff at City Hall to secure the building and fight off any zombies who made it inside.

“My condolences. And the man I spoke to on the phone earlier?”

“Pogo. Also, dead.”

“Any other adults?” George asked, scrambling for a higher authority.

“You can direct any questions to me.” Five said firmly. No one else moved to argue. 

“Is it just the six of you?”

They all nodded.

“Well, at least someone made it. The Police Commissioner and Governor have set up a secure facility to coordinate our tactical response. Is it, erm, is it just you?” He said, glancing at the children gathered in the foyer. Diego was still downstairs, locked in the vault.

“We have civilians in the front rooms,” Allison mentioned. “We brought them in.”

“Vanya suggested we quarantine them in case anyone was infected.” Luther added.

“Oh,” George murmured, looking at the unfamiliar child curiously, “that was sensible. We know that symptoms tend to present themselves within twenty-four hours if the host isn’t immediately killed by the encounter, in which case reanimation happens much faster. We’ll take the civilians off your hands for processing.”

He gestured towards one of the soldiers who proceeded to carry out his instructions. 

“Do you want…”

Five cut him off. “We’re secure here.” He didn’t want to risk being taken into formal custody, where the children might be split up without Hargreeves there to pull on the right strings. “I presume the National Guard is taking care of the borough?”

“Yes, you should be fine if, as you say, the house is secure.” George looked back at the way they came in. “We can help repair this before we go.”

“Much obliged.” Five said dryly. “We have some more people upstairs. I’ll get them for you.”

Grabbing Vanya, he hastened them upstairs so they could get Toshio.

They paused on the balcony as the dividing doors between the front rooms of the Academy were opened and tired civilians were ushered out towards the street. They were directed onto trucks, used for clearing the non-infected. Glancing at them, Vanya saw they were more relaxed then when she helped sort them, the presence of a uniform providing the authority they were looking for and which – despite all of Reginald’s efforts – the Umbrella Academy had never been able to provide. Even on their missions, the police still provided a useful presence in disarming a situation, lending law when the Umbrella Academy stepped outside its bounds. 

“Do you think it’s really over?” Vanya asked, watching the crowds instead of Five. 

“I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.” Five mused, not wanting to get her hopes up. “We don’t know how many people were infected.”

“And Diego?”

He sighed. “That’s why we need to stay here. I don’t want these lot seeing him, they’ll think they need to…”

“Kill him.” Vanya finished when he trailed off. “He’s dangerous.”

“So are we.” Five huffed, plucking the cricket bat from her and resting it against his shoulder.

Extending his free hand, he held it out for her. 

“We’ll be okay. We just need to stick together.”

Nodding, Vanya looked over her shoulder one more time at the doorway – glancing at the mayhem on the streets, knowing she would dream about it forever – before taking Five’s hand and allowing him to guide her forward. 

* * *

Vanya still had to show Luther how to turn the television on. Given it had taken several months for him to stop looking guilty just stepping into Reginald’s former study, she supposed he was making progress. 

“There you go.” She said, showing him again which buttons to press. 

The screen flickered to live, stuck on the same channel Klaus had last left it on. It was some mind-numbing game show, the zombie participants trying futilely to complete tasks they hadn’t the capability to understand. Vanya thought it was an odd use for them, but she figured the setting gave them a chance to roam which they wouldn’t get otherwise. 

“Thanks, Vanya.” He said, taking the remote off her and staring at it with confusion. “I followed the instructions you wrote out for me, but I think I pressed the buttons too hard.”

“Don’t worry about it,” she shrugged, “you’ll get the hang of it eventually. Just think of it like when you were learning to open doors without pulling the handles off.”

Luther sighed heavily. “That took months.”

Allison patted his shoulder. “Yes, but do you remember the old handles? The brass ones? They were hideous. So, you really did us a favour in the long run.”

He smiled at her gently. “Thanks, Allie.”

Leaving them to their moment, Vanya hastened downstairs where she knew Five was waiting for her. They were meant to start training an hour ago, but her phone call with Toshio had overrun as his parents insisted on speaking with her to thank her once again for keeping him safe at the Academy during the outbreak. They did it every time she called, which she did every week. It was nice to stay in touch with Toshio. When she’d started school, she had doubted she would ever make friends. Though circumstance was responsible for pushing them together – and a lack of choice given most of their former classmates were now either deceased or working in zombie-approved jobs – Vanya was grateful for him. He often provided a much needed gateway to reality, reminding her of what was happening outside the Academy; where the Hargreeves remained holed up barring brief excursions outside.

She passed through the foyer on her way to the elevator, observing the triple locks on the front door which Five had insisted on even as things settled down. As he often liked to point out, just because the zombies were largely under control it didn’t mean they should let their guard down. It was the same reason most of the cameras were still installed in the mansion, much to Klaus’ ire. He’d wanted to rip them down as soon as they had the house to themselves, but they provided another useful layer of security. 

After the city was brought under control, once the zombies who had terrorised the streets for three days were either killed or captured for testing, when those who were still living tried to rebuild their lives after so many of the people they loved were lost, then attention had fallen back on the Umbrella Academy. Sir Reginald Hargreeves was included in the lists of well-known individuals lost to the carnage and, unsurprisingly, questions were quickly raised of what would come of the Umbrella Academy. Some enterprising journalists had even tried to break into the house during the first month to investigate.

Watching the news together, they heard speculation of why they failed to appear in the public eye when they were most needed. It ranged from forgiving to accusatory. They were outnumbered, they had lost their leader, they were only children. They were lazy, they were never what they promised to be. Some people even suspected they were hiding the true extent of their casualties, wondering why they hadn’t been seen in months and if any of them were truly still alive. The Umbrella Academy knew they would have to speak to the press eventually, but they used the excuse of their recent bereavement to buy time to put their story in order.

The main issue they faced was staying outside of state control. Without Reginald around, there was no one to pull on the right strings and keep them in the mansion. Luckily, some well-placed rumours took care of that when social services paid them a visit and, before they could be shipped off – into the foster system if they were lucky, or a facility if they weren’t – Grace was recognised as their main caregiver. No one suspected she wasn’t a real person, Allison’s rumours had made them overlook some glaring indicators that would lead them to the truth, and so they were able to stay at the mansion. If Grace appeared before the cameras, however, it could become difficult to keep up the illusion, and the press were clamouring to find out who was the Umbrella Academy’s new leader.

They also had another family member they needed to protect.

Once the elevator doors slid open, Vanya hastened down the corridor to the vaulted room which Diego had lived in for the first two months after the apocalypse. An examination of Reginald’s documents and alterations to Grace’s confidentiality protocols had quickly revealed what it was really designed for. It was why she was there now. 

“There you are.” Five called out. He was pacing the length of the room; once an austere space but now softened with cushions and throws. “What took you so long?”

“My phone call ran long, and Luther needed help with the television again.” She explained, stepping into the room and kicking off her shoes so she wouldn’t track dirt on the blankets. 

Five rolled his eyes. “It’s not rocket science; I don’t know why he struggles so much.”

“He’s getting better.” Vanya excused. 

“Well, we’d better hurry if we’re going to get away tonight. How are you feeling?”

“Calm.” She assured him. “I listened to some music and Mom gave me some cookies, so, I feel pretty good.”

He smiled, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear. “That’s what I like to hear. If this gets too much for you, just let me know and we’ll move onto something less intense. Okay?”

Nodding, Vanya asked, “Are we shutting the door?”

As it was designed to keep her contained, they had decided the vault was the ideal space for her to master her powers. Strong enough to withstand any incidents and once the door was closed any overwhelming noises were blocked out. Five kept her training every day, always careful not to make the same mistakes Reginald had, keeping her happy and calm as they gradually worked their way through the array of abilities now at her fingertips.

“No. You’ll need some ambient noise to make this work. Have you got a target in mind?”

She pointed at one of the cushions propped up against the wall.

“All right. Just try to move it, you don’t need to do anything else.” Five said, offering her his hand. 

She didn’t need to take it for her powers to work, but something about the feel of his skin on hers helped to keep her grounded. It stopped the buzzing in her ears, which had been building since the day they slowly weaned her off her pills, and helped her to focus when the world around her seemed too loud. 

Five ran his thumb across the back of her hand in soothing strokes as Vanya targeted the cushion. Blocking out everything except her and Five, she imagined wrapping invisible strings around it and slowly lifted it into the air. With an excited whoop at seeing it hover over the ground, her concentration broke, and it fell back to the floor, but she didn’t mind. 

“Perfect.” Five cheered, squeezing her hand a little tighter. “That was absolutely perfect.”

“Shall I try again?” She asked, eager to do so.

“If you want. Don’t push yourself too hard though. I don’t want you to feel too tired for tonight.”

Vanya assured him she wouldn’t. 

By the time they finished their session, the pillow was spinning in lazy circles around the roof of the room. They were settled on the blankets below; the ones Klaus had brought in while Diego was still living there to make it appear less austere. 

From the entries in Reginald’s journal, Vanya knew she had spent time in the vault as a child but, every time she paid the room a visit, she was never anything but grateful she remembered none of it. It was such a miserable place. Five had been furious when he found out what had been done to her; for the first time feeling some remorse for killing Reginald, only as he now wished he had dedicated more time to the task. He’d also tried to take his indignation at her treatment out on Allison, but Vanya had stopped him there. He settled for setting Reginald’s corpse on fire instead. 

“What time are we leaving?” She asked, gently allowing the cushion to fall to the floor. 

“I thought we’d go around eight if that’s all right with you?” Five replied, pushing himself up. “I promised Ben I’d check the reinforcements on Diego’s room.”

He offered her his hand and pulled her up.

“Sounds good. Can I go with you? I haven’t seen Diego in a while.”

Ben and Klaus were very protective of him, working with him in his new room which – while Five had handled all of the security features – Klaus had decorated with abandon, painting it pretty colours and adding items he thought Diego might like. 

“If you want. Just don’t get too close.” 

Rolling her eyes, Vanya assured him she would never be so stupid. 

The room was just off the landing where Grace recharged each evening, so she could easily keep an eye on him while everyone else slept. The walls and door were reinforced with metal sheeting Luther had installed, with bars placed on the window and plenty of locks on the door. Despite all of his finishing touches, Klaus was frustrated it still looked like a prison cell, but they couldn’t take any chances. 

As usual, Ben and Klaus were in his room already. It seemed that zombies retained some of their original characteristics and – while they were incapable of expression – they still enjoyed old hobbies. A new television set had been placed in his room for Diego to watch and there was a foam dartboard for him to practice throws. Like all zombies, he attempted to eat anyone who ventured too close, but, as time progressed, he seemed to respond more to his former teammates’ voices and ceased any attempt to bite when asked. 

“Hi,” Ben said, looking exhausted as they let themselves in. Five returned the sentiment before he started walking around the edges of the room, checking Diego hadn’t caused any new damage. 

“How was training today, Vanya?”

“Good.” She shrugged. Five immediately took over, not allowing her to undersell herself. 

“She did great. We started on telekinesis today, since we’ve made so much progress with long-distance hearing.”

“Oh,” Klaus said, looking over interestedly. “So, you have control of that right? I mean, you can control what you do and _don’t_ hear. Right?”

Vanya tried not to grimace. In that first horrible week off her pills, she had heard more than she ever wanted to. 

“What about you?” Five said, glancing over his shoulder as he tested the strength of the window bars. “How’s it going with your powers?”

Klaus was still attempting to locate Diego’s ghost, contemplating the idea of melding body with soul, but had no such luck. Either he had moved on, leaving a shadow of himself behind, or, as Five suspected, he was still alive enough for his spirit to remain trapped in his decaying body. Sometimes, when it was just the pair of them late at night with no one around to overhear and judge, Five would confess that he thought it was cruel to force Diego to continue in such an existence. Especially when Diego had argued for his death soon after he was bitten. No one wanted to see him gone forever, however, and so he remained. 

“Nothing.” He huffed. “I’ll keep trying though.”

Offering him a sympathetic smile, Vanya said, “He looks like he’s doing better.”

It wasn’t a total lie. Looking at him, sat in a chair in the centre of the room with chains designed to stop him snatching at his visitors, she could see there weren’t any fresh bite wounds from attempting to free himself. According to Ben’s morning updates, she knew he had finally realised Grace wasn’t human and had permitted her to clean him – he appeared all the better for it. His complexion was still mottled with decay, but his hair was clean and brushed, and his clothes were free from bloodstains. 

“Yes.” Ben agreed. “He’s not trying to bite much anymore. And he seems content enough with the food we give him.”

“A couple more months and we might even be able to let him have a walk around the house,” Klaus said, trying to sound optimistic about the possibility. 

“Luther keeps offering,” Ben said. “I think he’s looking for some way to help and he’s probably the only one of us strong enough to hold onto the chains. Although at the rate you’re progressing, you might be able to do it telekinetically soon enough.”

She nodded despite lacking his confidence. 

“You’re going to Griddy’s tonight, right?” Klaus asked. “Could you bring us some doughnuts back? I can’t remember the last time I got to leave the house.”

“We’ll bring everyone something back,” Vanya promised. 

Ben and Klaus were the only ones who hadn’t left the house since the zombie apocalypse, too nervous to leave Diego alone for such a length of time. In fear that he would escape, or the others would kill him in their absence, she wasn’t sure.

It was a commitment Vanya admired but she was starting to worry about them. 

“Everything looks all right to me.” Five said, finishing his inspection of the room. “I’ll check again next week unless you see anything before then.”

“Thanks, Five.” 

“Have a nice time tonight.”

Taking Vanya’s hand in his, Five led them off to their room to get ready for their date. 

After Reginald died, and with Pogo no longer around to reinforce the rules, the remaining Hargreeves had seen no point in keeping up with protocol. There were no missions to go on, though they followed Grace’s advice and continued their lessons. Everyone still trained their powers too, knowing the importance of keeping in shape while zombies still roamed the earth. But everything else had fallen by the wayside. No more early morning alarms or training drills in the middle of the night. Their diet was relaxed to that of normal teenagers. And, instead of staying on the children’s corridor with two small bathrooms to share between them, they’d all moved into the more accommodating guest suites. 

Luther and Allison were sharing adjoining rooms on the top floor, a jack and jill bathroom between them. Everyone knew that Allison would have preferred they share the same bedroom but, for the time being, their current arrangement was the one Luther was most comfortable with. Vanya understood it was the strangest for him, being free of Reginald’s tyranny. He still seemed to jump sometimes when he found himself in the middle of something that would previously be disapproved of. Like Reginald’s spirit would appear to berate him for his failures in his absence. 

So far, there had been no sign of Reginald’s ghost. At least, not according to Klaus. They didn’t know if it was because the zombification had somehow affected the transition into the afterlife or if he simply didn’t care enough to stick around, but no one, especially Klaus was upset by that. 

He was sharing a room with Ben on the same floor as Grace and Diego. It had taken very little persuasion by Ben to convince him to share one of the suites; he hated being alone. And, as the Academy member with the least defensive power, Ben was keen to keep him close in case a rogue zombie found its way into the mansion.

Reasons Five had also given when he unceremoniously moved all of Vanya’s stuff into their new bedroom one afternoon, but no one was fooled by the excuse. He’d outed their relationship to the other Hargreeves only hours after their first kiss and tried to keep her at his side every moment since. Their new room could fit her old room within its walls several times over. She’d borrowed some artwork from Pogo’s former bedroom, a way to keep him in her memories, and decorated it with some of the nicer furnishings from around the house, working to make it a space that really felt like theirs and not an extension of the mansion they’d both come to hate. 

“Make sure you wrap up warm.” Five told her, rummaging through their wardrobe for their coats. “It’s cold out there. Put on another layer.”

Vanya shrugged. “If I get cold, I’ll just steal your coat and put it over mine.”

He pointedly laid out her thickest sweater, a scarf, hat and gloves on their bed. 

“I can dress myself you know.” She snickered. 

“Well, apparently not.” Five said, walking over and pinching the light flannel shirt she was wearing. “This is not enough to keep you warm.”

Wrapping her arms around his waist, Vanya smirked. 

“I was counting on you to do that.”

Stepping closer, Five leant down to press a kiss to her lips. He frowned when he noticed how cold her skin was. 

“Training didn’t take much out of you did it? We should have had a break.”

Vanya assured him she was fine.

“I don’t want you to push you too hard.” Five said, still concerned. He didn’t want to be like Reginald when he had trained the Umbrella Academy. Reading his journal had revealed one too many horrors he had inflicted upon them in his quest to shape them and no one wanted their newest member to experience anything like it.

“You won’t. I trust you.”

He kissed her again, lingering longer this time, determined to warm her up until she was prepared to step out into the fresh winter air. 

They would leave the Umbrella Academy someday. When they were older, and when the outside world was a little safer. Find an apartment of their own, interact with people unshaped by Sir Reginald Hargreeves. Carve out a home for themselves, a place they could truly call their own. For now, however, wrapped up in Five’s arms in the comfort of their room, Vanya was content. Life was good; despite the added dose of zombies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I'm so sorry about the delay posting this. Basically the week I was meant to post turned into this stressful nightmare and then I took the week after to recuperate. But it's here now and it's a good long chapter. I hope you like the ending! I tried to stay pretty faithful to the film, although I added a bit more to the epilogue. 
> 
> Next up I will be working on a Fiveya secret santa project, which I should post on Christmas Eve. And then I will return to Leyden Jar while continuing with book edits (first edit nearly done 🥳). So until next time, stay safe 💕


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